The Pretender
by StValentineSt
Summary: I'm not a boy, but you will never know it." There is a new addition to the Ouran High School Host Club and an unwilling one. But what dark secrets does he or is it a she? hold and how far is Kyoya willing to go to uncover the truth?
1. Chapter 1

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A small girl tiptoed towards the white doors of a hospital ward, where she had heard her mother to be held. It's been almost a week since the accident, but she had yet to see her mommy and her small heart clenched with pain and hurt. She missed her mother's gentle arms and her soothing smile, especially now, when Akito, her twin brother, was gone. The girl was told mommy needed to rest, but surely, she wanted to see her daughter, right? And so she slipped out of her own ward and made all the way down here. Her little hands pressed down the handle and she slowly opened the door, peeking inside the room.

The ward was large, with one bed, drowning in flowers. She could see her father sitting on the edge of the bed and her brother Touya standing behind him. Her mother was sitting back in bed, smiling at her husband lovingly. The girl grinned happily, ignoring her guilty conscience. She knew she should have waited until she was called, but the girl just couldn't wait anymore, the heartache of missing her mother was ripping her apart... Her small heart was beating loud and the blood was rushing up to her head. She entered the room almost on tiptoe, whispering quietly, "Mommy..."

Her brother Touya was the one who heard her first and he turned his head towards her surprised. His eyes widened in realization, but there was nothing he could do at the moment. Meanwhile, their mother turned to the girl as well and looked at her with slight disbelief. The girl's heart stopped beating for a moment and then fluttered with joy, as she heard her mother's voice, "My baby!"

She smiled happily and ran to her as fast as she could. Just a moment later, her feet carried her onto the bed and her mother hugged her, tears streaking down her cheeks, "My baby, my little baby... oh, I was so worried! Akito, my little boy..."

_'Huh? Akito?..'_

The girl raised her head confused, her voice quivering sadly, "Mommy?.. It's me, Akira."

"Huh? What are you talking about, Akito?" The woman smiled at the child tenderly. "What's this about Akira? Who's that? A friend of yours?"

The girl stared at her mother flabbergasted, unable to grasp the situation. Why was her mommy acting so strangely?

"No, mommy. I am Akira... Akito, my brother... he..." The girl sniffed, her voice breaking in the middle of the sentence.

Her mother stared down at her shocked, her pupils widening ever so slightly, something rising in the depths of her mind.

"Sakura, don't listen!" Her husband shot up stressed and Touya grabbed the girl's shoulders, trying to pry her away.

But the child clung to her mother desperately, crying "Mommy... My brother is gone now... Akito..."

"Wha... is this a joke, Akito?" The woman stared at the girl surprised, shaking her head, her voice almost hysterical. "Tell me you're playing with me, Akito…"

"N-no... mommy? Mommy, it's me, Akira! Akito is dead..." The girl sobbed, finally letting go of the woman and her older brother pulled her into his strong arms, embracing her tightly.

"Kyaaahhhh!" Meanwhile, her mother let out a sharp scream, flailing her arms up and down. "You're lying! Lies! ALL LIES!!! Why are you lying to your mommy, Akito? You're my little baby.... no, Akito can't be dead.... my Akito..."

She started weeping and then screaming and laughing hysterically, pushing away her husbands arms as he tried calming her down. A pillow hit the ground as she yelled out Akito's name in despair, and her hands pushed a nearby vase with flowers down, making it shatter to pieces. The little girl stared at her shocked, holding onto her older brother, crying quietly.

"M-mo-mommy..."

Touya pressed her closer to him, his eyes watering with tears as well, whispering, "Mommy is sick, Akira, mommy is very sick…"

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A young teenage girl shot up in her spacious bed, a single tear running down her cheek. The bed sheets were crumpled around her and the pillows lay on the floor as she tossed them away in her restless sleep. She often had this dream, more of a memory actually. It was her first visit to her sick mother after the accident. Also, it was the time she found out her mother could not remember her at all. Her own daughter. The girl called Akira didn't exist any more. As if she never did. The girl hugged herself, wanting to cry, but unable to. She had these nightmares so often she barely had any tears to cry. No matter how hard it was the only person to ever see her cry was her older brother Touya.

'_Touya... I wish I could see you... I miss you so much,' _she closed her eyes in a silent prayer, but at the same time she knew it was impossible. He had gone to Great Britain for a few months to look after the building of a new hotel. He was constantly busy and even when she called, he didn't have much time to talk to his little sister. The girl sighed. Perhaps, that's for the better. It was high time she grew up and stopped relying upon him.

She quickly glanced at the clock, which said 4am, and sighed. There was no way she could fall asleep again. And so she got up, put on some clothes and went to the arts room, where the piano stood. The girl sat down and started playing something, anything that was on her mind, really. She could play the piano quite well, as her mother wanted her son Akito to be a perfect man and so she had to learn everything she could and even that, which seemed to be unattainable.

'_A perfect man, huh? Quite impossible, I must say. It's been like... 8 years, since I started pretending to be my deceased brother...' _ She thought to herself smugly.

Her fingers stopped moving and the melody died down. The girl simply sat there in silence, thinking back. Eight years, half of her life... living a lie. She herself was one huge lie. She shook her head and stood up.

"No, this is over now. I'm starting my life anew. Yes, today will be my first day in school. In a normal school far away from mother, where no one knows me," she smiled widely. "Finally! I can wear skirts… And dresses!"

The girl laughed out loud and started dancing around in joy. She could not even remember the last time she wore a skirt or at least something similar to it. It was always guy clothes, always pants or jeans and nothing else. And so, she quickly showered and dressed up, paying little attention to the clothes, brushed her short brown hair and ran out of her room, grabbing her bag on the way. It was still only 5:20, but she decided she could walk around and then head to the school. She exited the house, which wasn't very big, so she needed only a few maids, looked around and turned to the right, the direction of her school. Her hands automatically put on her headphones and she started listening to some music. The first song she put on happened to be "Open road" by Bryan Adams and she hummed together with the singer, nodding her head and smiling widely.

Then, she circled around, spinning on her heel, and sang out loud, "Who knows, where I'm going, Life is an open road, it's a best story ever told, it's a..."

Her voice echoed through the empty streets as she half ran and half danced on the pavement, glancing around curiously at the same time. As she walked like this, listening to this song, she felt as if the whole world belonged to her. As if she too was walking on an entirely new road of her life. When she finally reached the school grounds, it was already almost 8 o'clock.

The tall white buildings rose up, shining in the morning sun and Akira whistled at the size of the campus. _'Rich bastards. And I'm one of them...'_ She shook her head as she turned off her Mp3 Player and headed to the gates. She still had some time, but the girl thought she could walk around the school grounds before the lectures. Yet, as she went towards the gates, she noticed a few girls with some mean looking guys in front of them. The girls looked a bit scared, and Akira sighed, realizing the situation quickly.

She walked towards them at a quicker pace, at the same time admiring the cute uniforms of the girls...

'_Sooooo cute... and sooo girly! Waahh, I want to wear one too. Damn that school for mixing up the documents and not sending me my school uniform! Anyways, I can finally wear a dress! Kawai...' _With such thoughts she reached the girls and frowned slightly, seeing they were on the verge of tears.

'_Troublesome...'_ Akira sighed, stepping closer. The girls glanced at the newcomer nervously as she approached their group.

"Yo!" Akira grinned, waving her hand.

The guys turned around, their eyes squinting at her, "Huh? And who are you?"

She looked at them, quickly noticing they were not wearing Ouran uniforms, so unless their uniforms were late like hers, they were not from this school. Which was good to know, for she hated bullies.

"I believe you are troubling these girls," Akira beamed a smile at them and turned to the girls. "Right, dear ladies?"

"Y-yes..." The girls blushed faintly.

Still smiling, Akira turned to one of the guys, who seemed to be the leader of the gang, and gave him a warning glare, at the same time saying sweetly, "Would you mind leaving them alone, then, please?"

"Wha... What do you think you are?" The guy yelled at Akira, snarling.

Yet, she smiled even wider, "It's not what, but who."

"Huh?"

"When referring to humans, you should use the word 'who', not 'what'."

"Wha... Oh, you think you're so smart, huh?" The guy grinned and his lackey cackled as if he had said something incredibly funny.

"Let's see you counter THIS!" Meanwhile, he launched a punch towards Akira's face, but the girl simply stopped it with her hand.

Among other things she had to learn, she mastered quite a few martial arts. Her mother believed a man should know how to protect his girl, so it was inevitable for her.

Strangely enough, Akira really liked it, for fighting was the time when she could let out all of her emotions, all of her anger and hidden rage. It was as if she became someone else, someone much more sinister... she knew no mercy in a battle.

And so, the girl smirked as she saw the shocked expression of the poor guy, who had not expected this kind of turn of events. Akira didn't waste time and grabbed his arm, twisting it so, that he fell to his knees. She was glaring at him venomously and her eyes had a tint of blackness. She stepped behind the guy pulling his arm and making him lie down, at the same time noticing the second guy try to land a punch on her from behind. She stepped on the back of the first guy with her right foot and turned, kicking the second guy with her left foot in the stomach. He flew a few steps back and fell to his back, clutching his stomach. Akira heard the first guy scream in pain as she stepped on him hard, but she didn't quite care. Actually, she kind of enjoyed it.

And so Akira grinned at the second guy, hissing venomously, "Get out of here, before I lose it."

She let go of the first guy, who jumped up and hurried away with his friend, pretty much scared of her.

"Such weaklings," Akira sighed and turned to the girls, who looked amazed and shocked at their savior. "Are you ok, ladies? They didn't hurt you, did they?"

She was back to the nice guy act already and the girls suddenly blushed a deep red and screamed. Akira glanced at them in shock, as for a moment she could swear she could see hearts floating around.

"Th-Thank you... very much," one of the girls muttered, looking at her savior from below and blushing like mad.

"Eh... that's nothing," Akira flashed a smile. "Glad you're ok."

The girl blushed even more and her friend squirmed clutching to her. Akira started to find this quite funny. Up till now she went to an all boys school, so she didn't know much about communicating with girls. She always wanted a girl friend, not a boy. Then, Akira glanced down at the saved girl again and noticed a dark spot forming on her right wrist, where the guy held her before. Instinctively, she grabbed the girl's arm, not noticing the girl blush even a deeper shade of red and her friend yelp with surprise.

Akira looked down at her wrist, whispering, "I'm so sorry, I should have come earlier," her eyes gleamed with pure anger. "Bastard, I should have broken his arm for this!"

To Akira's surprise, the girl cried out with delight and hearts were floating around her and her friend again. Akira just stared it amused, but her train of thoughts was interrupted by someone from behind her, "You're really good at fighting, right? Right?"

Akira turned around surprised, letting go of the girl's hand. Her eyes widened as she stared at the two guys standing before her. There was a freaking tall dark guy in front of her, but what was even weirder than that was that there was a small blond kid next to him. They were both wearing Ouran Academy uniforms and the little boy was smiling in a rather silly manner at you, but you noticed he must have been older than he looked. There was just something about him that gave off a weird feeling.

"You're really strong, right?"

The blond asked again and Akira noticed he was holding something behind his back... Something… pink?

"What is... that?" She pointed at the thing with her hand, slightly confused.

The boy looked surprised and then he smiled again and brought it forward for her to see, "This is my Bun-Bun! Do you like him?"

"It's... a toy?" Now she really WAS confused. "And it's pink..."

"Hn, hn... Do you like it, do you like it?"

"It's pink."

"YES!!!" He grinned at her again.

Akira stared at him amazed by his childishness and then suddenly she laughed out, but then stopped immediately, as if she was caught doing something bad. She was not used to laughing. But then again, she couldn't keep herself from smiling, at the very least.

She ruffled his hair lightly, grinning slightly, "And to think at first I thought you were like 17 or 18!"

The boy's eyes widened and she noticed the tall guy gave her a surprised look, though up till then he stood as emotionless as a statue.

"What? Did I say something?"

The blonde suddenly beamed a smile and Akira could see little pink flowers around him now.

'_Hearts? Flowers? I swear, this is one weird school...'_ She thought to herself, wondering if she was actually gonna be alright.

"I'm really 17!" The blond smiled at her and Akira gasped. "How did you know?"

"Huh?.. Are grown ups allowed to carry toys here?"

"Don't know, I do," he smiled widely again.

Akira started to think the smile was actually glued to his face. And it seemed... so genuine.

"How did you know his age?" Suddenly, the tall guy inquired, looking at her attentively.

_'Pfft, so he does talk...' _She snorted inside her head.

"Yeah, yeah, how did you guess?" The blond looked impatiently at her.

"Ah... I just thought your eyes were a bit scary," Akira replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "Your aura seemed different from that of a child. Oh, well, sorry for calling you a child."

And then she smiled again, "And your bunny seems nice too. Though I don't know really, I didn't play much with plush toys when I was little."

_'Actually, after the accident, I didn't get to play anything I liked anymore. Even my favorite dolls were thrown out, cause I became... a boy,'_ pain scorched through Akira's chest, but she kept on smiling.

However, the boy seemed to get sad, "Why not? It's fun!"

Akira nodded, still smiling gently, "Yes, but my mother thought a boy should grow up courageous and manly. Plushies were just in a way. Well, I personally believe it takes a lot more courage to walk around in streets with such a big toy, after all, I bet you get weird glances once in a while."

The blond kid looked at Akira shocked and his cheeks reddened slightly, his huge brown eyes staring straight at her.

"Here!" He then thrust the bunny into Akira's hands forcefully. "You can play with it for a while!"

"Huh?"

The blond smiled again and ran past her through the gates, the tall guy following behind him like a tail.

"Wha... Wait!.. Wait up!" Akira turned around, but the boy was gone already. "Oh man, how in the world am I gonna return this?! I don't even know his name!!!"

_'Oh, maybe those girls know him!' _A thought flashed in her head and Akira cast a glance to the girls she had saved earlier, but they were gone as well.

"Just my luck..." She whispered, her hands pressing the toy closer to her chest.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks' for the review, Sweet Nightmare's Good Byes, hope you all enjoy my next updates. I'll try updating often as I only need to reedit the chapters. Enjoy the appearance of Kyoya! ^^**

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Strangely enough, the calm morning had just become quite hectic... Akira let out a soft sigh, her fingers tugging at the ears of the pink plushy. She had managed to beat up a few guys, save two damsels in distress and even meet some strange boys.

"God, how did I get in this mess? What will I ever do with this plushy toy?" She hugged the plush nevertheless, feeling that its softness was rather soothing and pleasant. After all, it's been so many years from the last time she held one in her arms. She had almost forgotten the feeling.

The girl passed the gates and after taking a glance at the clock, she realized she had less than half an hour to find her classroom. She shook her head and quickened her pace. _'I'll return this toy later, someone in school must know those two. I somehow got an impression they always walk together...'_

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Meanwhile, somewhere in the classroom, Kyouya's POV:

I entered the classroom as always 10 minutes earlier and was surprised to find it quite in a ruckus, especially the girls. _'Hm? Is Tamaki here already?'_ I glanced around and noticed him almost instantly, strangely enough, this time he was NOT in the centre of attention. Instead, everyone circled around a girl, Liz, if I'm correct and her best friend Mika. She was obviously telling everyone something and I found it quite interesting that Tamaki was so immersed in it. I pushed my glasses up a little and made my way to Tamaki slowly. There was no way I'd show my interest in anything clearly. After all, I bet Tamaki will notice me before I even reach him. Well, what did I say?

I smiled with the corners of my mouth, almost invisibly to others as Tamaki ran to me shouting loudly, "Kyouya! You will never believe this, but what a horrible thing happened right here, in our school!"

"Good morning to you too, Tamaki."

"You're not listening to me, Kyouya! Oh, it was horrible, disgusting, no... it was simply dreadful! How could a man do such a detestable thing!"

I sighed. He sure knew how to get carried away.

"Oh and my poor princess Lizzy, lost like a little lamb! To think I was not there when she was in need! Oh, it's unforgivable!.. I can't be forgiven..."

"Oh, no, Tamaki-senpai! No, please, this is none of your fault!" The girl Liz ran up to Tamaki blushing.

"Ah, don't say that, my princess! I neglected my duties, how could I let such a thing happen right here in the school..."

I was already beginning to lose my patience, so I decided to question the poor victimized lamb.

"May I ask what happened?"

Liz turned to me and gasped, "OH, Kyouya-sempai, it was so horrible, I was so scared! Me and Mika, we both were so scared!"

"Hm, hm, so awful!" Tamaki was nodding his head in agreement.

"And then HE came, so gorgeous, oh, those eyes... those eyes, so kind and yet so protective! And when he looked at me... Kyaaaahhhh!!!!" She squealed and all of the girls screamed with her as well. I thought I was gonna need my ear plugs if this was to continue.

"Oh, and then the monster attacked him, but then, just BAM, BAM! And they were lying on the floor, unconscious, and then, and then, he pulled tem up and said 'Get out before I kill you!' it was sooo... sooo.... Kyahhh!!! It was as if he was a completely different person, so cold and cruel!.."

"Kyaaaahahh!!!" The other girls in the classroom screamed in delight.

"And then, then, he took my hand so gently and his eyes were soooo.... and he, he... he kissed me...." The girl blushed and squealed again, all other girls screaming and fainting from overflow of emotions.

I sighed. In other words, at least, as much as I managed to understand, she was probably approached by some guys outside the school and then someone obviously beat them up. Though I'd highly doubt about the kissing part and maybe even the beating one too. I pushed my glasses up again. Well, so much for a...

"Oh, Kyouya, can you imagine it? A knight in shining armor right here, in our school! Noble, kind and gentleman to all the ladies..."

I simply turned around ready to go to my seat, when I overheard the girl say, "Oh, and there was Honey-senpai too... and Mori-senpai! And, and Honey-senpai told he was like... the master of fighting! And he gave him his bunny Bun-Bun as a reward for saving me!!!"

I froze and turned around almost instantly. _'Impossible! Honey would never give his bunny to anyone!'_

I shook my head; I'll have to ask Honey and Mori what actually happened there. But as I finally took my seat, a loud and sudden "Kyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh! That's HIM!!! My knight!.." deafened me for a moment. I raised my head and my eyes widened in shock - right next to the open door there stood a guy, a bit messy with clothing, light brown hair and nice facial features, but what was the most surprising... in his arms he indeed held Bun-Bun, Honey's bunny toy...

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Normal POV

Finally, Akira sighed with relief as she had found her classroom. Damn, the school was as huge as a Minotaur labyrinth. She had also had the luck of meeting her teacher in the corridor and he let her through the doors first. But as soon as she entered her new classroom, she was welcomed by a deafening scream. The girl flinched from the high pitched sound and looked around for its source.

Apparently, it was the girl from this morning, the one she had happened to save. The girl was looking at Akira and, actually, EVERYONE was staring at her now. Akira merely smiled her usual smile and waved her hand, as if sending a silent "Hi".

She noticed there was only one boy sitting out of all the class and he was wearing glasses, so she couldn't see his eyes as the light reflected off of them. Still, she had a gnawing feeling he was watching her closely. And so, Akira gave him the same faked smile as the others and stepped a few steps forward to let the teacher pass. He went to the blackboard and after calming the class down, introduced Akira to them. She slightly frowned as he called her by the name of Akito, but there was nothing she could do. It was a miracle her father even let her attend this school so she thought she could live with being called by her brother's name. Sure, she longed to be called Akira once again, but she was ready to sacrifice her name if only it meant she did not need to pretend to be a boy any longer. Ah, to be a girl again…

Her thoughts were interrupted by the teacher nudging her, and Akira smiled sheepishly as she walked to her designated seat. Oh, and guess what? It just happened to be right next to that eyeglasses dude.

'_Great, just great... that guy is giving me the creeps. If he was a girl, I swear, he would be like a black widow... Freaky,'_ she thought to herself, but retained an indifferent expression on her face as she walked past the other tables and sat at hers. Then, she turned to the glasses guy and nodded at him politely, smiling what she called "a friendly smile". He answered with a similar smile and for a moment Akira felt as if it was just as faked as hers. Well, after 8 years of faked smiling she had quite a hunch for it.

Still, she said nothing and turned away, putting the bunny on her knees, her gingers tugging at its long ears again. She didn't even notice she sat the way a guy would, she was so used to it she didn't even think much about it. What worried her more, were the stares she felt coming from everywhere. Sure, she was new girl around, but why all the attention? Sometimes, she'd meet the eyes of some girls, but as soon as she flashed a smile at them, they would just turn around quickly, blushing deeply.

'_What is it with these girls?! Either look at me normally or don't look at all, damn it! And just why the hell is everyone staring at me?..' _Akira gritted her teeth, feeling annoyed by the behavior of her classmates, but there was nothing she could really do. _'Perhaps, they don't have transfer students here or something.'_

And so she sat quietly, barely listening to the teacher and trying her best to ignore the stares and secretive glances from the girls. Instead, she started admiring the beautiful yellow dresses of the girls here. Oh, how she wanted to wear one!.. Akira was almost drooling watching some girl in front of the classroom, not even noticing how furiously her object of attention was blushing, when the bell rang and the class ended.

Yet, Akira did not get a chance to get up as she was surrounded by her classmate girls. It was as if they suddenly launched at her and Akira beamed a smile at them, feeling rather confused at the attention. The girls squealed and Akira wondered how many decibels it was.

"I-I... I wanted... to thank you for before," meanwhile, one of them stuttered and Akira recognized the girl from this morning.

She smiled yet again, "It's alright, I'm just glad you're unharmed."

Akira nodded her head in a friendly manner and looked at the girl reassuringly, her thoughts though revolving about something else. _'Damn, this dress is just TOO cute...'_

The girl noticed her stare and blushed, "Wha... Why are you staring at me, A-Akito-kun?.."

"Huh? Oh, I was just thinking you look so cute in this uniform... Dresses really suit girls the best!" Akira grinned silly and the girl blushed even a deeper red though Akira failed to understand why, her attention breaking due to the loud screams of the other girls, which made her ears hurt.

She did not realize yet that she was digging her own grave...

"Akito-kun!!!" Meanwhile, the surrounding girls blushed furiously, while Akira watched them confused. They were staring at her in anticipation and she had absolutely no idea what they wanted, so she simply beamed her warmest smile, which could have melted away even ice, at least, it always worked on her mother and her ex-classmates.

"I hope we can soon become friends, please take care of me from now on," Akira noted, bowing her head politely.

"Kyyyyaaaaahhhh!" The girls screamed again and Akira flinched from the sound. Really, what's with all the yelling?

"It seems you totally won their affections," a voice from her left said and Akira turned her head to her left to see the glasses boy.

His lips were smiling, but his eyes were icy cold and seemed calculating, almost sly. She knew these eyes, maybe even too well; it was as if she was looking into a mirror. And so, Akira smirked slightly, as she decided to tease him a bit.

"It's hard, isn't it?"

"Hm? What is?" The boy asked a bit surprised.

"To fake a smile."

For a moment there she could see a shocked expression in his face, but that lasted for a mere second as his poker face returned and he beamed an even sweeter smile at her, "Now why would you think so?"

Akira flashed even a sweeter smile than his, replying, "I don't think, I know."


	3. Chapter 3

**Hope you're not too confused yet with what's going on. ^^ Enjoy and review, if you have the time! I'll be happy to receive your opinions.  
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Akira turned her head away from the glasses boy as she called him, not seeing him grin widely. The next lesson was about to start and the girls didn't crowd around, as they seemed to have gone away when the boy talked to her. Still, Akira could feel they all were watching her from afar, giggling and stealing glances at her.

Just as she was contemplating their weird behavior, a blond head with sparkly blue eyes obstructed her view and Akira flinched back, startled.

"You have divine talent, my boy!" The head bobbed up and down and its owner grinned stupidly. "Yes, with just a little polishing maybe you could become as good as... Oh, but after all, I am the master, yes, I could teach you best and show the glistening way to every princess' heart!.."

He stretched his arms enthusiastically and Akira automatically raised her brow in confusion. '_Lunatic...'_

"Ah! A wonderful and kind noble knight taking the first steps to become the prince for giving absolute pleasure to the..."

Akira shook her head, tuning him out and not even trying to listen anymore, but suddenly, his head came into her view again, as he was obviously asking for her opinion on something. Too bad she wasn't listening to him. Akira also noticed the girls crowding around her again, while the blond was waiting for her answer impatiently.

'_Well, better get rid of him as early as possible...' _She thought and sent him one of her killer glances, stating coldly, "I think you are suffering from delusions and I want no part in it."

The poor blond LITERARY turned into stone, which, according to Akira's opinion, was not even possible and so she sniggered at the sight.

"Take it as a man, dear. No hard feelings," she mocked and the girls around squealed again.

The one Akira had saved this morning screamed with delight, clapping her hands together, "There, there, that cold glance from before, that sarcastic remark! It's his dark side.... Kawai!!!"

Akira shook her head slightly as she was seriously starting to think everybody here were delusional. But at that time the teacher came and the lesson began. Akira didn't concentrate much though, for she knew everything already anyway. She was at the top of her classes in her previous all boys school and though she was not a genius, she knew how to work hard.

Her thoughts drifted a bit elsewhere, to the things that worried her more. It's been 3 days since she had left home and she knew she'd have to call her mother during the lunch break, which, strangely enough, according to the schedule was incredibly long. Akira had no idea why, but she decided it was all the fault of the rich snobby kids attending the school. She sighed, pushing these thoughts away and planning her upcoming call. She really hated it, but she had promised to call regularly and as her mother always worried about her too much, she feared the woman might do something unthinkable if she didn't call. And so, Akira bit her lip in thought, planning her time and her personal schedule, _'So, it's one call during the break, it should be enough to calm her down for a while, then one after the lessons and one more in the evening, before going to bed. Maybe I should call her in the morning too. Yeah, I should play it safe just in case.' _She did not want her mother to get suspicious or worried too much, for that would be a disaster.

Akira was so deeply in thought about her mother that the teacher had to call her 3 times before she reacted. It was maths and Akira quickly calculated the problem on the blackboard, giving the correct answer in a matter of seconds. The teacher gave her a glare, obviously unsatisfied, but Akira could also hear silent gasps of surprise and then little whispers, "So smart....", "Waaaahhh, gorgeous!" around the class. She grinned almost happily, _'Cool, I'm getting popular._'

She wondered if she would actually make good friends here. Some of her classmates seemed rather… queer. Like they were hit in the head somewhere. Akira frowned slightly, contemplating on which ones seemed more sane in her class, but couldn't tell so soon. Furthermore, there was another problem at hand and as the lesson ended, Akira pressed the pink bunny toy tighter to he chest, _'Damn, I totally forgot it. I hope someone knows that guy.'_

She stood up and came up to the closest girl, who was packing her books into her bag, "Um, excuse me, miss."

The girl turned around and blushed as soon as she saw Akira, who smiled at her in a friendly manner, "I wondered if you by any chance happen to know the boy who owns this toy?"

The girl squealed silently as the other girl came up from behind her, "It's Honey-senpai's!"

"Oh, you know him?"

"Yesss!!!" They shrieked again, waving their hands in an almost fan-girl fashion.

'_Gosh, do they always scream like that?' _Akira kept a smile on her face, nevertheless, trying to seem as friendly as she could. She was not used to dealing with girls. "Um, could you..."

But before she could finish her question, the girls turned around and ran away, blushing furiously. _'Seriously, this is already getting on my nerves.'_

"If you're looking for Honey, you will have to come to my Host club!"

Akira swung around immediately to find the very same annoying blond from before. _'Please, not him...'_

"Host club?" She inquired loudly, her brow twitching ever so slightly in annoyance.

"Yes, the Host club of..."

"And what is it?" Akira interrupted him, before he ventured into his La-la land.

"Oh, our wonderful club is all about the handsome guys, that have time, giving their wondrous hospitality to the lovely ladies..."

Oh, he did it nevertheless. Akira shook her head smugly, "Hopeless..."

"If you wish to find Honey, I could help you out."

Arching her brow elegantly, she turned her head to see the glasses dude. Well, wasn't she getting popular with weirdoes?

"For what price, I wonder?" She asked, smiling at him.

He smiled back politely, "Free of charge for you."

"Oh my, I feel so honored," Akira retorted sarcastically and saw his glasses glint as he continued to smile at her. "Well then, I'd be glad to accept your help... um..."

"Kyoya Ohtori."

"You have my thanks then, Kyoya-kun."

He nodded, still smiling, "No problem at all."

It seemed that he wore the smile all the time. _'Great, two experts at fake smiling...'_ Akira chuckled at her thought, her smile getting slightly crooked.

"What's so funny?" Her newest acquaintance inquired, arching his brow slightly.

Akira smiled deeper, "Nothing much, but what about him?" She pointed at the blond guy, who was still at his own little world, gesturing something to someone and going around the classroom like a complete idiot.

Kyoya grinned, "I believe he'll find his own way."

Akira giggled at his remark and gathered her things quickly, readying to go out together with Kyoya, leaving the blond weirdo behind.

In a few more minutes, she was walking beside the glasses boy, holding the bunny in her arms and thinking how fishy this all Host Club sounded. Moreover, she had a feeling Kyoya was planning something too. Definitely. He was THAT type.

"So," Kyoya adjusted his glasses with a flick of his fingers. "Tell me, how did you get this toy?"

Akira glanced at him suspiciously. He was smiling.

"I got him from some blond boy, apparently he's called Honey."

"You didn't even know his name?"

"If I did, I wouldn't have asked the girls, now would I?"

He smiled again, "Most probably not."

'_Damn, maybe I was a bit too hard on him... After all, he's helping me out, whatever his reasons are.'_ Akira thought smugly and added, explaining more, "He didn't give me his name before running away."

"I see. And how did you say you two met?"

"I didn't tell you that," she peered at him. "We happened to pass by the gates at the same time."

"I see," Kyoya's smile did not waver and his eyes trailed away to look in front of him.

*+*

Kyoya's POV

He's smart. It seems that I'll have to ask Honey and Mori myself for more exact information. Still, there's something about him, something I can't yet grasp. I'll have to look up more info about his family as well. Maybe I missed something. Yet, he's... how should I put this... interesting.

*+*

Normal POV

Akira looked up at Kyoya again, only to see him smirk. _'Why is he smirking now? Just what in the world is he thinking about? I'd better be wary around him.'_

None of them said anything any more and after another 10 minutes of fast walking, they finally reached their destination, as Kyoya stopped by the door with a plate "3rd music room".

"3rd music room?" Akira cocked her brow, getting more and more suspicious by the minute.

"Yes," Kyoya adjusted his glasses again.

'_Must be one of his habits, huh,'_ Akira noted curiously.

"This room is used by the Ouran High School Host Club. Honey is a host as well, so you should be able to find him here," Kyoya explained and smiled.

Akira narrowed her eyes, realizing he really had planned something. Still, there wasn't much she could do, so she simply opened the door and went inside. The room was a huge one, with sofas and little tables, looking rather luxurious, but it was almost empty. She could see only one guy standing and he turned around as soon as he heard the doors opening. Akira noticed surprise cross his features at first, and then, a warm and genuine smile on his lips and his warm eyes as he stepped towards her.

"Hello! I'm Haruhi."

Akira smiled at him, "Aki..." and then made a pause, gulping down the ending. She had almost said Akira, thrown off by the genuine smile the boy gave her. "Akito."

She smiled again and the boy smiled at her too, "Nice to meet you."

Akira nodded, furrowing her brows only slightly. There was something strange about the boy. His big brown eyes and his manners, his gentle movements... She shook her head in confusion, for the boy reminded her of a girl. And then, her eyes widened in realization. Indeed, he was just like a girl, but why would a girl dress as a guy? But then again, Akira frowned, scolding herself, _'What right do I have to question her? I myself have been pretending to be a boy for 8 years, I'm no better.'_ She didn't notice Kyoya watching her intently, noticing the slightest changes in her expression.

"Huh, Kyoya-senpai, where's the Lord?" Akira heard two voices ask in unison and surprised she turned around to see two guys looking exactly the same...

"Oh? And who..."

"...is this?" The twins asked splitting the sentence into two parts, leaning forward towards her, their arms linked on their shoulders.

Akira opened her mouth in slight surprise. This was the first time she'd seen other twins, for she didn't happen to meet any after her brother died. It was a strange sensation and for a moment there her imagination ran wild and instead of two stranger boys she saw herself and her brother.

Lost in mixed emotions, she did not notice how she dropped her poker face and her body trembled. It seemed so real, she could see her brother stand in front of her, smiling tenderly, as if he was still alive. Slightly shaking, her eyes wide in surprise, Akira took a step towards the twins and reached out her hand to one of them, unconsciously wanting to touch him to make sure it was real. Her lips quivered as she called out her brother's name, "A-Akito..."

The sound of her trembling voice was like a gush of cold water and Akira gasped as she was thrown back to reality. The vision of her brother disappeared and she could see normally again, the two confused and curious twins standing in front of her.

But before she could say anything else, Kyoya preceded her, "Yes, this is Akito-kun, a new transfer student. This is his first day here."

While the glasses boy talked, Akira took firm control of herself and smiled, making it seem as if her outstretched hand was for a polite handshake, "Nice to meet you."

The twins looked at her hand, grinned, and shook it in turn, saying their names accordingly.

"Hikaru."

"Kaoru."

Akira smiled and sighed with relief. _'It seems like they didn't notice anything strange in my behavior. Good.'_

"So, we have a new guy now, huh?" Meanwhile, the twins grinned at her mischievously and Akira suddenly felt as if there was some kind of a hidden meaning behind those words. Was there?


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks' for reviews and adding my story to your favorites ^^ Hope you enjoy this one as well :)**

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*+*

Akira smiled again, trying to seem friendly, and, in fact, she actually felt so close to them, maybe because she once had a twin brother. She didn't know why, but she found it hard to take her eyes away from the two and so she stared at the twins, thoroughly studying their faces, noticing even the slightest differences between them.

"So, Akito-kun..."

"What are you doing here?"

The twins asked again, splitting the question into two parts, and then adding in unison, "Did you perhaps want to join our club?"

Akira found it really adorable: the way they talked, the way their thoughts were exactly the same... They reminded her of herself and her brother. When they were little, they used to play a lot like this; it was as if their minds were one. Akira spaced out a little, memories of her childhood flooding her mind. The girl only realized where she was, when one of the twins waved his hand in front of her eyes. She recognized him to be Hikaru.

Akira flinched ever so slightly at his movements and smiled, "Sorry, sorry, I kind of spaced out. What did you say?"

"We asked if you wanted to join the club. Cause then..."

"No no no, God, no!" She interrupted them. "I only came to return something. Kyoya said Honey would..."

She turned to Kyoya and noticed he was writing something down into his notebook. Akira raise her brow in wonder, _'Is he... like, taking notes? Damn, I knew this was not a good idea. Time to run before I'm in too deep...'_

And so, she turned to the twins, "Well, seeing as Honey-kun isn't here, I'll just go."

She smiled and tried to pass the twins, but they caught her by her arms, "What's the rush?"

"Stay here a bit! Let's have FUN!"

Akira stammered, blushing a bit, "Uh... I... I'd rather not..."

"TOO LATE!!!" Yelled the twins dragging the girl with them forcefully. She could hear Haruhi try to stop them, but it was impossible and when she turned to Kyoya for help, he merely gave her a dark smirk.

'_Great, oh so great... No way am I gonna get dragged around by these twins.' _

Akira sighed and pulled strongly one of the twins to her. He got surprised and that gave the girl some time to twist her arm and free herself. She quickly stepped on the other twin's foot and he let go of her, yelping, "Ouch!"

The girl jumped away from them and while shouting "Buh-bye!" dashed towards the doors. But just when she reached for the handle, the doors opened and not being able to stop in time, she crashed into someone's chest.

Akira heard the twins shout in perfect unison, "Mori-senpai! Hold him!" and looked up to see whom she had bumped into. Surprised she recognized the tall guy from the morning. She stepped back and immediately noticed the little blond boy behind him.

"Ah!" She exclaimed and pointed her finger upwars.

The blond boy ran around the tall guy called Mori and smiled widely, "Did you take good care of my Bun-Bun?"

Akira nodded, "Yeah, um..."

"Did you have fun playing with him? I always do!"

She chuckle and smiled at his childishness, "Sure, here, you can take Bun-Bun back. Thanks' for lending him to me."

"HUH?!" The twins came to them. "So you already know each other?"

Akira nodded again in agreement, "We've met."

"Hm, hm," Honey bopped his head up and down as well. "Akito protected two girls by the entrance to the school this morning."

"OH?" The twins said in unison again.

Akira just smiled nervously, for she felt like she really didn't like, where this was going. And how did Honey-senpai know her name_? _She could not recall giving it to him.

However, her musings were interrupted violently as Honey grabbed her hand and dragged her with him, "Come and have some cake with me! Do you like cake?"

"Uhh... yeah, but maybe a bit later, ok?"

Honey stopped and looked back at her with teary eyes. "You don't want to eat cake with me?"

She laughed nervously, '_God, what a crazy day...'_

"That's not it. I'll gladly eat it with you, but right now... I just have some things to do..." Akira smiled and stepped backwards. "So I'll just go for now. I'm sure we'll run into each other later, ok?"

She took a few steps more still smiling, but then heard a loud bang of the doors as they flew open and a dramatic voice, which the girl painfully recognized, shouted in an acted despair, "Oh, so unfortunate! I've lost my one and only... OH!!! Oooooohhhh!!!! Wah, so you decided to join us after all! Oh, Father is soooo happy!!!"

With horror Akira felt someone hug her and spin her around. She gasped and pushed the boy off of her immediately. "Stop fantasizing, you idiot! What's this about joining?"

She jumped away from the crazy blond dude enraged that she managed to let her guard down. She could hardly stand hugging or any kind of physical touch from strangers. The only ones she ever hugged were her brother and mother.

"Oh, but of course, didn't you come to join our marvelous Ouran Host Club?" The blond stretched his hands to her.

Akira shook her head, "Sorry, dude, I'm here just as a guest."

"A... guest?" The blond looked at her shocked. "I never thought... you were gay? Oh, I see! Then, what type do you prefer?.."

He waved his hand dramatically.

"G-gay?.. Type?" Akira stutter confused, shaking her head in confusion.

"Yes, you don't have to feel ashamed at all! It is completely normal to yearn for the affection of these handsome young men! Now, which type do you prefer?"

'_Ashamed? Ashamed of WHAT?!'_ Akira panicked in her head, trying to catch up with the idiot. _'Is he... thinking... that I'm a guy?'_

"Now, the Natural type?" Meanwhile, the boy waved towards Haruhi.

"The Little Devil type?" The twins stroke a pose smirking at Akira's shocked face.

"The Lolishota type?" The blond motioned to Honey. "Or maybe the Wild type?"

He showed Mori and Akira raised her brow, trying to figure out how in the world the tower of silence could be called "wild".

The blonde went on, stretching his arm towards Kyouya, "Then, the Cool type? Or maybe," he quickly stepped forward to Akira and she leaned back surprised as he reached out for her. "Maybe you would like to try the Prince type?"

"Waaaahhh!" Akira yelled and pushed him away with full force. "I'm not a f***ing gay, you moron! I'm just a normal g..."

Yet, she failed to finish her sentence as her phone started ringing and with horror Akira realized she completely forgotten to call her mother. She must be going nuts over her.

Akira quickly took out her phone, answering immediately, "Hello!"

*+*

Kyoya's POV

It was definitely a good idea to bring him here. I managed to gather some valuable information about him. Actually, for once Tamaki had a good idea. Akito would make quite an impressive addition to our club, definitely very profitable...

At that time, Tamaki started presenting the Host Club members and I smirked at his idiotic assumption of Akito being gay. I watched with amusement how Akito got totally bewildered and yelled at Tamaki pushing him away, "Waaaahhh! I'm not a f***ing gay, you moron! I'm just a normal g..."

He didn't finish as his phone rang and surprised I noticed that horror flashed in his eyes, but then he suddenly put on that mask of his. Oh yes, he was quite good at smiling and acting. Was that the reason he could notice my faked smile so easily?

I watched Akito answer his phone and for a few minutes he just listened to the other party talking. I pushed up my glasses and came closer, interested in his reactions, as his face had a bit of a worried expression and his voice was incredibly gentle, as if he was talking to a child.

"Yes, I'm fine, I'm totally fine. I'm sorry I didn't call, I was just thinking of doing that, but..." He glanced at us. "Well, everything here is... just so new and interesting."

"Yes, of course, I've made friends," he added hastily.

Oh, what a liar...

"Huh?" Akito's eyes glinted with slight surprise. "N-no, that... that is... Ah..."

Hm, I wonder whom he's talking to.

"Yes, I miss you too. I love you," a tender smile crossed his features.

Love? Was that... his girlfriend? Somehow, I felt strange. He didn't strike me as someone with a girlfriend. No, why would I even care?

"Huh?" Then, I noticed his eyes widen and Akito gasped. "What?! NO!" He yelled harshly into the phone. "T-That is... I mean, no need to! I-I'll come visit you, ok? Don't tire yourself with all the flying, alright? I promise I'll visit you this weekend, ok? We'll spend all the weekend together, alright? You don't have to come here, really!"

Hmmm... What was he so afraid of? Or...who? I narrowed my eyes, watching Akito closely as he finally said goodbye, promising to call soon again. Interesting, indeed. Even mysterious. What an unpredictable person.

I smirked. I will definitely find out your little secrets, just you wait...


	5. Chapter 5

**I hope you like the newest chapter. I'll try to update as quickly as I can again. Oh, and I should warn you just in case, this story will be getting rather sad at moments. Like, really sad. I hope you're prepared. I'd advise on a box of tissues, actualy. ;)**

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Finally, Akira said goodbye to her mother, who had just called her, and sighed in relief. Gosh, she almost gave the girl a heart attack, when she said she wanted to visit Akira in Japan.

'_I can't let her come here! I'm trying to start a new life here, it would be a disaster if she found out I'm going to this school as a girl... Yeah, a girl,' _Akira grinned happily all to herself. _'Finally, no more lies or pretending. Enough of that fake life._'

She tucked the phone safely away into her pocket and suddenly remembered where she was. _'Oh, right, that blond idiot...'_

Akira turned to the annoying guy, whom she vaguely remembered to be called Tamaki, and saw him gesturing something to Haruhi.

'_Oh well, if he's busy, then let him think whatever he wants...'_ Akira thought to herself and then her eyes widened a bit at the realization. No one in the Host Club was paying close attention to her, thinking that she was still on the phone. _'This is... my chance to RUN!'_

She smirked and stepped casually towards the doors, hoping to come as close as possible before getting noticed, but she was soon stopped by the twins. Perhaps, her assumption she was not under surveillance was wrong.

"Going somewhere?"

She cursed in her mind, but turned to them nevertheless and flashed a smile, "Apparently, yes. It's time for me to say goodbye. It was fun here, but I think I'll be going."

Akira continued to smile and try to think of a way to trick the twins at the same time, when the doors open again and a group of girls walked in. To her surprise, Tamaki dashed to them with compliments sprouting from his lips, as he took the hand of one of the girls into his, welcoming her to the club. Akira raised her brow and shook her head in disbelief. Rich kids sure were weird. She really didn't like where this was going.

But then, Kyoya spoke just beside her, "Why don't you stay here for a while, Akito-kun. It's not like you're rushing somewhere, are you?"

Akira flashed him a smile, wondering how in the world he managed to creep up like that, "In fact, I am, so..."

"Kyyyaaaaahhh!!!" Akira flinched at the high pitched scream and turned around to face some girls, a few of them from her class.

"Waaaah, Akito-kun!!! Have you... have you by any chance..." The girl talking squirmed and blushed, ending in a whisper, "joined... A-Akito-kun..."

_'That's it!'_ Akira gritted her teeth, losing patience and smirked at the girl in a seductive, yet somewhat sinister way. "What's with the screaming, babe? Am I too handsome for your pretty little eyes?"

She leaned forward towards the girl and winked suggestively at her. Oh, she will have the time of her life tomorrow when all of them realize she's actually a girl. Akira cackled almost evilly inside her head as she imagined their faces when she'd show up dressed in that cute yellow dress. Meanwhile, the victim of her playful act shrieked and apparently fainted as Akira barely managed to catch her in her arms. _'Whops, maybe I overdid it. Shouldn't have watched that stupid drama yesterday.'_

"Well," Kyoya pushed his glasses up. "You must take responsibility for that."

Akira merely sighed and carried the girl to the nearest free sofa, glad she did not weight too much. Meanwhile, the other girls squealed, watching her carry their friend and Akira started thinking this school was nothing more but a crazy house.

Kyoya was following after her and so Akira turned to him, her expression smug, "You seem to be one of the normal people here, so tell me, what does this club do?"

Kyoya smirked lightly as he replied, "Why don't you take a look around and see for yourself?"

Akira shook her head disbelievingly and whirled around, "Fine. I will."

She glanced around for a while until her eyes fell on the blond idiot, called Tamaki. He was holding a girl's hand yet AGAIN and rambling some nonsense into her ear, judging by how furiously the female was blushing.

"Tamaki, the Prince type," she heard Kyoya comment. "He's the most requested host here, sometimes referred to as the King of the Ouran Host Club."

"So, in other words, a soft-hearted idiot with self-esteem as high as the Eiffel tower. Half-french as well, I guess," Akira stated matter of factly and looked up at Kyoya to see if she was right, but his face was unreadable.

"Ok, so what's next?" She smiled and turned her glance to an unusual pair of a super tall guy and the little blond kid.

"Mori and Honey, the Wild type and the Lolishota type," Kyoya informed her and Akira raised her brow as she watched Honey simply act cute as a little child and Mori just... just... well, just STANDING... Oh, come on, he was not even talking or smiling!

"Great... I'm starting to think these girls are real perverts," she murmured smugly. "Why is Mori the Wild type? Beats me, really. He seems more like a nanny to Honey."

"Then what about Honey-sempai?" Kyoya inquired curiously and Akira stayed silent for a moment before answering.

"Frankly, he is... scary. He has those eyes that just might shoot lightning beams if you're not careful around. Damn, I wouldn't want to be the one to wake him up in the morning," and Akira chuckled at her own pun, though she really did not think it would be funny to see Honey's waking face.

She did no notice Kyoya give her a disbelieving look, as she turned to the twins and a small warm smile appeared on her lips.

'_He's got a sharp mind,'_ Kyoya narrowed his eyes on the newcomer, watching the boy closely. _'He sees right through our facades... But how?'_

Meanwhile, Akira still stared at the twins, raising her brow at their act of incest love to the girls.

"Does this even work?" She finally asked, glancing at Kyoya.

"The Little Devil Type."

"That's called INCEST, Kyoya," she gave him a stern look and then, suddenly, let out a small laugh. "Well, the world of the twins is always extremely small. You have to make up weird games to keep your sanity intact."

She sighed and turned to the twins again, this time frowning slightly, adding in a soft whisper, "Trust is a feeling hard to find..."

* * *

Kyoya's POV

"Trust is a feeling hard to find..."

He said it so casually, but I could still hear his voice tremble ever so slightly. That's right, his file mentioned he had a twin sister. Apparently, she died in a car crash. Is that why he knows so much about Hikaru and Kaoru? Is that why he can understand them so well? Still, it doesn't explain the others...

* * *

"So, is there anyone else I need to see?" Akira asked nonchalantly and Kyoya smiled at her. Yet, Akira just scoffed at it, for fake smiles were her specialty and she could see them coming miles away.

"Haruhi, the Natural type, is over there," Kyoya pointed out and Akira looked at that direction to see the girls crowd around poor Haruhi.

'_Lesbians...'_ she thought to herself, though she wasn't entirely sure. Yet, the gnawing feeling was there and she was willing to risk it.

"No comment," Akira said out aloud.

"No comment?" Kyoya arched his brow, surprised.

"Yep," she turned around to face him. "It's not my place to question why a girl poses as a guy. She must have a good reason for that."

She noticed that her words shocked Kyouya so much he gasped and even though he soon regained his composure, she knew she got it right. Haruhi was indeed a girl. How queer. Why would she dress up as a guy? Well, none of her business. She of all the people had the least of rights to question someone else's choices.

And so Akira turned around and headed towards the doors, but Kyoya grabbed her hand, stopping her. The boy turned her to face him, his eyes unreadable behind his glasses, his voice a bit ominous, "You seem to know a lot about the members of this club and I wonder how. So tell me, what do you think of me?"

Akira kept quiet. She was not about to go and blab her life story to him, tell him she had played at the games or pretense for so long she could see right through the masks of the others. It was vital for her to survive.

Instead, she gave him a cold look, pulling back her hand, "I think I'll keep that to myself. Why don't you try and find it out yourself, poker face?" She flashed a confident smirk and brought down the last punch line. "Or are you too busy running the Host Club from the shadows?"

Kyoya's eyes widened at her words and she turned around, not waiting for his answer. Oh, she knew people like him, people like them. And she hated them all along with their silly facades. She longed for something true, something pure. For a relationship without any lies and secrets. She had enough of that on her own. She did not need any more scarred friends, shielding from the world in their own bubbles. What she needed was someone, who did not try to pry into her life, did not ask silly questions or draw her into a battle of wits. Someone, who did not hold any stupid expectations of her or tried to change her, improve her. No. She needed someone, who simply accepted her the way she was. Isn't that what everyone wants?

And Akira truly hoped such a person would enter her life one day. She was ready to wait for him or her, whoever it might be. However, first, she needed to get out of this freak show house and it seemed to be rather difficult to do as a certain blond face came into her view again.

'_Will I EVER get out of here?!'_ She shrieked inside her head and grumbled, "And what do you want now?"

Tamaki shoved his hands towards her in a sudden motion, "Ah, my noble knight! You simply MUST join my fabulous club! Yes, the ladies await...."

His voice was overpowered by the fan girls shrieking and it was seriously getting on Akira's nerves. She only wanted to finally live a normal life, start things over, but noooo… Everything just HAD to go wrong today and her patience was running low. Dangerously low.

"Look, that's not possible however you look at it. I'm not suited for this thing, so just let me pass," she sighed heavily. "Gosh, do I even look like a guy to you?"

She shook her head, as she fumed inside, _'For goodness sake, I'm a GIRL, are you all that stupid and blind to really mix me with a guy? Even in my old all-boys school I was considered girly, though no one managed to find out my real gender.'_

And so Akira glanced at Tamaki, hoping he'd step away, but the boy just put his fingers to his forehead as if thinking incredibly hard.

"Yes, yes... I see what you mean!" He finally noted almost gravely. "Your face is really delicate and you're so skinny! Oh, but don't worry! This club exists to help out everyone and anytime!" He grinned at Akira idiotically. "We'll definitely help you become more manly! Yes, my boy, we'll make a man out of you!"

He thrust his arms up in glee, while Akira just froze in her place, the words echoing through her mind, anger and hatred rising in her heart. _'Man, man, man, man...'_

"Man...ly..." She whispered shocked, barely containing herself. She hated how her mother always tried to shape her into a perfect guy, perfect heir, perfect son…

"Yes! You'll see, with our help, you'll become the perfect man!" Tamaki grinned again, his hands landing on Akira's shoulders encouragingly.

Yet, to his utter shock it had a completely opposite effect as it was the last drop and Akira snapped, rage overcoming her. She jumped towards Tamaki and grabbed him by his throat firmly. With her strength and the advantage of surprise, she pushed him easily against the wall and hissed through her teeth, "Say that again and I swear you won't live to see another day."

Then, she let go of him and Tamaki slid down to the ground, flabbergasted. Akira did not even look at him, she did not hear the girls shriek and scream or see the other club members run towards Tamaki in slight panic either.

She simply stormed off the room, slamming the doors behind her, and ran along the corridor as far as she possibly could.

_  
'Why is everything falling apart the very first day?! I just want to finally live my own life! Is that too much to ask?.. Don't I have the right to?.. Don't I deserve it?'_

That day, she didn't go to any of the lessons. Instead, the broken girl wandered around the town, lost as to what to do and came home only at night. Her mind and heart had settled down and Akira felt stings of guilt probe her heart. She had no idea how to face those guys anymore, after all, both Kyoya and Tamaki were in her class... There was no way she could turn back the time and change what was done. It was too late. Way too late.

_  
'What should I do now? I lost my temper... and worse, I took it out on him... God, do I really look that much like a guy?.. No, no matter. Tomorrow, I'll put on my new uniform and I'll apologize to Tamaki, properly. Hopefully, he'll forgive me. Even if it was harsh what he said to me, he didn't know anything and I overreacted... It's my fault too.'_


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks' for the review, Shadowess 88, and yes, this story is going to be heart-wrenching. Cause I'm cruel. lol Anyways, here's the newest twist in the story and, hopefully, you didn't see this one coming! Enjoy! ~.^**

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Akira woke up to the ringing of her alarm-clock. She got up and looked out of the window of her room, knitting her brows in thought, _'Strange, I haven't slept this well in years... Oh well, today is a new day!'_

She grinned as if a child who had just gotten her birthday present, _'Finally, I'll wear a cute dress and I'll apologize to that blond idiot Tamaki. I bet his mouth will hit the ground as soon as he sees me today!' _

Then, she frowned slightly, realizing she'll have to apologize properly to him, after all, strangling her classmate was a bit too much. He didn't know her circumstances and she didn't even want anyone to know. Akira shook her head slightly to get rid of dark thoughts and started humming a random song to herself, getting ready for school. She showered and grabbed an apple from the kitchen, ignoring the maids who were trying to feed her some baked eggs. Then, she called her mother and chatted for a few minutes. Frankly, it was kind of weird, for her mother Sakura seemed to be in some kind of a rush and was eager to say goodbye to her. Which was incredibly queer for her mother rarely left the house and spent her days in her lovely garden. But Akira did not take notice of it and simply shrugged it off, bidding goodbye. _'Strange, usually she wants to talk as much as possible. Hm, maybe something came up or her garden needs more watering. She's crazy about her roses, after all.'_

Some thought was gnawing at the corner of her mind, but Akira ignored it, her lips grinning in a smile as she thought about the upcoming day. She found the maid and asked if her new uniform had been brought and received a box in reply. The girl took it and practically ran to her room, her heart beating loudly.

'_Yes, finally, a dress! A real, cute dress...'_ She opened the box smiling, but as soon as her fingers unwrapped the paper on the top of the clothing, her eyes widened in shock.

"No way..."

She shook her head, shut her eyes for a second and then looked down at the box again... The smile disappeared from her lips and she cursed under her breath, "Damn it! They sent me a guy's uniform!"

She held up the jacket in her hands and cursed silently again. Then, she put the uniform back in the box, grumbling. There was no way she was going to wear THAT. No way. Everyone was already thinking she was a guy and she had no wish to incent them more. And so Akira picked some other clothes form her wardrobe.

'_I'll have to go buy some normal girl clothes as well, later on. All I have is jeans and shirts_,' she thought smugly and sighed. That's what you get for living a boy's life. _'Oh well, I'll just have to go to school like this today. I'll go ask to change my uniform later in the day.'_

* * *

Akira entered the school without any other adventures and came to her classroom just a bit early, after all, she wanted to apologize to Tamaki. He was not hard to find as he was surrounded by girls and so she started walking straight to him, her expression calm and unreadable. The girls noticed her and let out a high pitched shriek, whispering between themselves and parting to give her way.

Tamaki noticed Akira too and as she neared him, he flinched and let out a nervous laugh. Akira noticed Kyoya rise from his seat and come stand beside his friend, watching her movements carefully.

She stopped in front of Tamaki, who was now looking at her half fearful and half surprised, unsure of what she was going to do. Akira took a breath in and bowed politely to him, apologizing, "I'm very sorry about yesterday."

She heard the girls scream enthusiastically and continued, "I lost my temper, but it was wrong of me to attack you. I can only hope for your forgiveness, but I will understand if you do not."

Akira rose and bowed her head in another apology. For a moment, Tamaki stared at her confused, but then, a smile crossed his features and he nodded, "Apology accepted."

Akira smiled with relief and heard the girls shriek again. She even wondered it they ever stopped screaming. But that was not as important as the fact that her apology was accepted and Akira took her seat with a lighter heart. She did not like violence, but lately she had noticed she had become quite moody, as if there was this unquenched anger boiling in her and ready to erupt as if a volcano. She told herself it was the stress from everything she was going through in her life, but that did not help her emotionally. So what if you know you're in depression. It does not change the fact you are still bothered by the same problems.

As the lesson started and continued on, Akira tried shaking off her rather oppressive thoughts. After all, she was starting everything anew. However, she was not sure she liked the beginning of her new life. Akira felt as if everyone in class was watching her and frankly speaking, it was creepy. She even started considering the option of changing schools. Unfortunately, her mother had wanted her to attend this particular school and therefore it was a perfect opportunity to finally get away from her. Akira sighed and prepared for another crazy day in her new school for she had a weird feeling it wouldn't be as normal as she expected it.

She was right. The day would have been passed by smoothly, if not for Tamaki blabbering about her joining his club or Kyoya watching her constantly… or the silly classmates screaming at everything she said or did. She had some very unnerving suspicions that she was branded as a guy by everyone and she was not sure if she should laugh at it or cry over it. On one hand, it was creepy that everyone assumed her to be a boy… Was she that guy-looking?.. On another hand, it would be real funny to see their faces when she finally came to school in her real uniform. After a while, Akira decided one day more or less would not make a big difference and no one actually asked her about her gender, so she figured it would be weird to suddenly stand up and yell out that she was a girl. Totally weird. She did NOT want to be branded as a psycho.

However, by the end of the day, everything was already getting on Akira's nerves and she didn't even notice when her at first rather genuine facial expression was taken over by an always smiling poker face. She was so good at hiding her anger and irritation that none of her classmates ever noticed how annoyed she was with them. Frankly, she herself did not notice when she put on the mask. It was so natural to her that she hardly paid attention to it. And she was never good at socializing, especially with some crazy people, screaming at her every move.

So, when the lessons were finally over, Akira let out a sigh of relief, rising from her table. Tamaki came up once again, wooing her to come to the club again, but she simply ignored him this time, saying she had to go somewhere else. And it was the truth, actually. There was that stupid incident with her uniform.

As if having read her mind, Kyoua asked with a polite smile, "I was wondering why you're not wearing your uniform again."

Akira frowned ever so slightly, "They sent me the wrong uniform this morning. I'm going to tell that to them and ask for another one. Can't go around wearing the wrong stuff, can I?"

"True," Kyoya nodded and smirked. "Though I believe you would look good in it."

Akira cocked a brow at his reply, wondering which uniform he was imaging her in… After all, if he thought Akira was a boy, just like the rest of her class seemed to think, then he thought she'd look good in… a dress?.. Ok, that's just... just.

She gave him a confused look and cleared her throat, "Well then, I'll see you tomorrow."

'_Weirdo,_' she added in her head and turned around, not waiting for his answer.

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I was walking to the Club together with Tamaki, my mind still wondering about the newcomer. Akito Heishi. Living in a family of four, former a family of five. Father Victor, British origins, successful businessman and the creator of the famous Hou Hotel chain all around the world. Mother Sakura, Japanese, a family woman and loving mother, expressing excessive obsession over gardening ever since a terrible accident, during which she lost one of her children. It seemed that her physical condition was not too good and she rarely left the house due to her weak constitution. Then, brother Touya, seemingly bent on taking over the family business just like a first son should do, yet, also striving to start a business of his own. According to the hottest news, he was about to open a recreational resort in Wales. And finally, Akito, a twin boy, having lost his sister Akira in a car crash almost eight years ago. A loving son and a prodigy, excelling in almost everything he does, starting with studying and ending with martial arts. Yet, he was not what I expected to see. Not a pampered rich boy, far from that. I felt as if he was hiding something dark under those polite and friendly smiles of his. But no matter how hard I dug, most of the information about the Heishi family was inaccessible even to me. Especially, if it had to do something with Akira, Akito's twin sister. I figured the Heishi family had to uphold their reputation and status and, clearly, they wanted personal information to remain personal.

I knitted my brows in thought, tuning off Tamaki's complains that Akito had been ignoring him and showed no wish to join the club. Frankly, I would have done the same in his place. Funny though. Tamaki seemed to have already forgotten that Akito had almost strangled him. Well, that's Tamaki for you.

But I wonder... why did he burst like that? As far as I figured, the last Tamaki's words really set him off. Something about being manly? So, it would seem Akito didn't like to be called manly. How curious. He was the second son of the family. Wasn't he worried about his position? Well, perhaps Heishi family was different.

Either way, Akito was one interesting guy and I smirked, thinking of a strategy to make him join the club, "Don't worry, Tamaki, I'll think of something. Akito would be a nice addition to out host group."

"Really? You think so too, Kyoya, right? I'm telling you, he's a natural..." Tamaki went on chatting about his newly found talent, but at that moment something else caught my attention.

There was a woman, standing in the middle of the corridor. An outsider? How queer. She turned her head, a worried expression on her face, as if she had lost something and now she was desperate to find it. I narrowed my eyes, knitting my brows in thought. She seemed familiar. Where have I..?

Meanwhile, Tamaki had noticed her too and ran to greet her enthusiastically. I followed him and when the woman finally turned to us fully, I gasped, the final links clicking in my mind… Sakura Heishi?!

Surprised, I stared at her in a rather rude manner, noticing her incredibly pale white skin and delicate face. She seemed rather fragile as she bowed to us politely, a kind smile on her lips. She wore an elegant japanese style dress and she looked simply breath taking, almost ephemeral, a real regal lady.

Tamaki bowed to her as well, presenting himself, his hand holding hers gently as he kissed the back of her hand politely. The woman seemed to be taken aback pleasantly and nodded at Tamaki gently.

I bowed politely, "Kyoya Ohtori, at your service, madam. May we help you somehow?"

The lady smiled sincerely at us, though a little worriedly, "My, what polite young men. Let me introduce myself, I am Sakura Heishi. It is such a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Likewise," I smiled politely,

"You both seem so very kind," she nodded her head. "I would be forever thankful if you could help me out a little."

"It would be an honor to us," Tamaki smiled happily while I wondered what Akito's mother was doing here of all the places.

"I was looking for my son Akito, but I seem to have become lost. Would you happen to know him perhaps?"

Tamaki gasped, clutching her hand in a sudden joy, "You are Akito's mother?"

"Well, yes," she answered, mildly surprised by Tamaki's reaction.

"Oh! Oh!" The blond exclaimed impatiently. "It is such an honor to meet you! And yes, we do know him, we're classmates even! I've been trying to get him to join my Host Club all day, but your son is so stubborn!"

"Host Club?" Mrs. Sakura wondered curiously and I knew what was coming next.

"Yes! Ouran Host Club is all about..." Tamaki started telling Akito's mother Sakura about his wonderful Host Club in full details and I noticed she was listening to him intently and even seemed to be quite mesmerized by the idea. As much as Akito seemed to be revolted at it, his mother was simply spellbound. I smirked slightly and jotted down some notes into my notebook. This might become useful.

But suddenly, lady Sakura gasped and her face lighted up with a warm and loving smile, "Oh, look, it's Akito! AKITO!"

She called out to her son louder and I tilted my head up from my notes to indeed see Akito, standing on the corner stairways, looking immensely confused. He must have been to the administration office to inquire about his uniform. Yet, right now Akito's expression was absolutely interesting and I arched my brow in surprise. I've never seen so many emotions at the same time - there seemed to be shock and surprise in his eyes, anger and then horror with a tiny speck of guilt as if he was caught doing something utterly bad.

I watched him shut his eyes in disbelief and shake his head fervently, before glancing back at us. For a very short moment, I saw his eyes glint with despair, as he stuttered, "M-m-mother..?"


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks' for the reviews, both Shadowess 88 and Delu! ^^ I'm glad you're enjoying it so much. This story was my first fanfic baby, actually, so it does have its flaws, which I'm still trying to fix. And Akira hasn't cried since Akito's death (I'm not counting a few tears slipping out, only real weeping and sobbing). Well, enjoy the update! :)

* * *

Akira was finally heading home, trudging down the stairways from the administration office. This entire school was slowly getting on her bad side, so to say. It was as if nothing was going the way it was supposed to go. _'What do they mean by saying they sent me the right uniform?! Damn it, check you data for once, I'm a GIRL, how can I wear a guy's uniform?.. Well, I did of course, but that was in a past. I want that cute dress!!!'_

Although from outside Akira looked calm and collected, inside she burned with anger and had a very improper urge to break something. She had been talking to that stupid office woman about the uniform incident for almost 20 minutes and all she got was a promise to send her a new one tomorrow if there really was a mistake. _'Do they think I can't differentiate between uniforms or what?.. Maybe they think I don't know my own gender?!'_

She angrily stomped down another flight of stairs and stepped into the corridor, ready for more steps, but then a painfully familiar voice called out to her and Akira froze in place, her heartbeat escalating considerably, "...it's Akito! AKITO!"

'_No way! It can't be! She's far away from here at home, impossible!..'_ The thought crossed her mind frantically and Akira whirled around quickly only to see her own mother standing further away... She was smiling lovingly at her and a whirl of emotions flooded Akira, her eyes reflecting all of her shock and the dreadful fear when she realized the situation, _'What is she doing HERE?'_

She stuttered weakly, still unable to believe her eyes, "M-m-mother..?"

The woman smiled at her warmly, "Oh, my dear, I'm so glad I've finally found you. I missed you so terribly and I was so lonely these days..."

Her gaze drifted away for a short bit and she seemed saddened. Akira blinked, quickly regaining control of herself, noticing Tamaki and Kyoya nearby. Immediately, she put on a happy, heart-warming smile, while cursing all the gods in her mind, and walked towards her mother, stretching her arms for a hug.

"Mother!"

Sakura snapped back from her own little world and smiled sincerely at Akira. The smile stabbed her like a dagger. Her mother always smiled like this - happily, warmly, sincerely, carefree... like a child. It hurt whenever Akira thought of how she used to smile like that too and now all of her smiles had become yet another artificial mask of hers.

Nevertheless, she hugged her mother tenderly and kissed her in a cheek. Still smiling gently, Akira asked, "Mother, why are you here? Didn't I promise to visit you?"

The woman smiled happily as if without a care in the world, "Oh, I was so lonely without you, Akito, I just wanted to see you so much. Ah, but you look so different. Have you been eating well?"

She caressed Akira's arm worriedly and Akira smiled even wider, reassuring her, "Yes, of course, I have, mother. Do not worry so much, I am alright. Rather, how are you feeling?"

A worried expression crossed Akira's face, "How was the flight? Do you..."

"Oh, it was so awesome! I saw all the clouds and the cities seemed so tiny from up in the sky and I felt a bit weird, I mean I was flying! I wonder why I was so scared of it before, but I'm so happy now," she smiled at Akira. "Oh, Akito, you just have to tell me everything! Have you already found a girl, perhaps? Oh, oh!"

She turned around and grabbed Tamaki's hand, "I've also met these wonderful boys and they run a club, a Host Club! Can you imagine that?"

Akira blinked in surprise and suddenly she felt like she was falling into a very deep pit, _'No, no, please, no... NOT the Host Club...'_

But it was too late, "You know, in my time we didn't have anything like that in school! Oh, but you absolutely MUST join the Host Club!"

"Yes, yes!" Tamaki seemed to be overjoyed at having found a fellow soul, while Kyoya merely pushed his glasses up his nose.

Weirdly enough, Akira could guess what he was thinking, and so she rushed to change the topic to one that worried her more at the moment, "Mother, did father come with you too?"

"Oh, yes, of course," she replied smiling. "He wanted me to wait back at the house, but I wanted to surprise you here!"

Akira flashed another smile, cursing her mother's absent-mindedness, "Yes, you definitely did! I haven't had such a pleasant surprise in years. Um, mother, do you know where father is now?"

Sakura seemed to contemplate for a bit, "Hmmm. I think... Oh, yes, he said he will first take care of our moving in, the luggage and the furniture too... You know, your furniture was really horrible! How could you ever live in such conditions? Oh, my poor boy, I knew those maids wouldn't take good care of you!"

At her words, Akira's eyes widened in shock and her face paled as if it was made of chalk. She didn't hear much of anything else her mother said, as she echoed with horror, "Moving... in?"

She was still in a daze, when Tamaki's gleeful voice reached her ears, "Yes, let's go to he club NOW! Ah, such an elegant lady, we are not worthy of your presence, but, please..."

Frantically, Akira grabbed her mother's arm turning her around to face her, her voice strained ever so slightly, "Mother! Why don't we go home? I missed you a lot..."

Sakura smiled at her son, "Oh, but Akito, dear, we have to visit the Host club first. You just have to sign up..."

"Of course, but I believe father might be worried about you. We should go home for now, you can come here next time," Akira rushed to coerce her mother.

"Ah, my dear Victor, truly, he always gets so worried whenever I leave the house. Oh, but Akito, you will surely join the club, right? And then I'll visit you there, oh, that's so amazing! I'm sure you'll become a true gentleman in no time!"

Akira flinched at her words, nodding her head reluctantly.

"Ah! I know, your birthday is coming up soon, why don't we celebrate it there?" Her mother suddenly turned to face Tamaki. "Do you think we could celebrate Akito's birthday with you in the Host Club?"

Akira bit her lip and clenched her fists so hard that her nails dug into her soft skin. This didn't go unnoticed by a pair of dark eyes that were always watching her carefully.

Truthfully, Akira simply hated her birthdays. She hated it so much she couldn't stand it at all. She felt as if it was never her birthday that was celebrated, but rather Akito's birthday. For her, the real Akira, never even existed in this world. Not to her mother, at the very least.

Meanwhile, Tamaki clapped his hands joyfully, accepting the idea without even a second thought, "Ah, yes! That would be unforgettable, but he must join my club first!"

"Of course, he will!" Akira's mother laughed happily, while the girl beside her could barely mask her anger with another gentle smile. "Right, Akito? You'll join the Host Club, isn't that so?"

Sakura turned to Akira and she beamed a widespread smile again, as the phrase she'd been constantly repeating for the last 8 years, flew out of her mouth automatically, "If that will make you happy, mother."

The woman clapped her hands like a child would and exclaimed joyfully, "Oh yes, Akito, but that's a promise, right?"

Akira gave her a slightly strained smile, lying through her teeth, "Yes, a promise."

Lady Sakura laughed happily once again and Akira noticed Kyoya smirk widely. He'd been silent all the time, but somehow Akira knew he was enjoying this to a great extent.

She smiled forcefully at her mother once again, taking her by her arm, "Mother, we really should go now. Say goodbye to Tamaki and Kyoya."

Sakura nodded, overwhelmed with Akira's decision to join the club and bid farewell to the host club guys. All the way back her mood was up in the clouds and she chatted about the Host Club, while Akira just walked beside her, nodding and smiling, keeping up her poker face and yet, sinking deeper into depression and unanswered questions, a very bad feeling gnawing at her heart...

* * *

Akira rolled to her other side in the wide bed, a single tear streaking down her face, her eyes staring emptily somewhere into the far wall of the room she was in. She recalled her horror and her shock, when she returned home with her mother and found out the house was being sold. Her mother then absent-mindedly remembered they had moved into another house and decided Akito would live together with the family again. Akira closed her eyes slowly as she reminiscent how she dialed the number of her father's personal assistant with trembling fingers. The moment he told her the new address, somehow, she knew everything was falling apart.

Her father was out on business and there was no one who could explain to her, what was going on, except for her mother, who was overjoyed at the prospect of a new garden as if a child, having received a new doll. Nothing was going as it was supposed to and when Akira finally had a chance to talk to her father late in the evening, it was only heart-wrenching. It was hardly even a conversation. Somehow, she already knew how it would end. Not once in her life had she managed to stand up to her father and in the end she lost. No, perhaps, she had lost from the very beginning.

Perhaps, her father had never intended to let her go. Perhaps, he merely gave her a few days of holidays. Three days of freedom that ended before it even started. And now she was back to playing the good son. The perfect son her mother had always wanted Akito to be.

She opened her eyelids again, feeling as if they weighted a ton. Surprisingly, her eyes were dry, her mind as calm as ever. The promise to be free again, to live separately and to go to school as a teenage girl she was, seemed to be so far away now. As if she had dreamt it long long ago.

Her life was back to the one she had always known and even though Akira kept wondering just for how long she was going to pretend to be someone she wasn't, she just didn't know the answer. It was supposed to be just a year or two at the most, just until her mother came to accept the truth or died of her weak constitution, but it had already lasted for 8 years and she still could see no end.

Her father simply refused to let her go back to her real life and she even wondered if he even recalled she was his daughter and not a son. Have they been lying to each other for so long that it turned into a truth?


	8. Chapter 8

**Another chapter today, just cause I'm in a totally good mood and managed to edit it quickly ^^ Also, Akira's father Victor finally makes his appearance in flesh and blood, but I highly doubt any one will like him . lol Yeah, so, if you like my story or simply wanna speak up, just leave a review ;) The comments always keep me in high spirits! ^^**

* * *

The next morning, Akira entered the classroom perfectly on time, yet, her mind totally elsewhere, her heart aching and suffering. She heard the girls squeal upon seeing her in the totally new uniform, but she didn't care much. The costume fit her perfectly and, perhaps, if she was a boy, she would have found it appealing, but she did not.

She walked to her seat, nodding at her classmates, her expression a perfect mask of calmness, and took her place beside Kyoya, slightly nodding at him in a greeting. She was not in a good mood, her heart empty with only stinging pain, her mind racing in a rebellious state, but years of practice had done its toll and Akira masked it with a calm poker face and a perfectly polite and even friendly smile.

There was nothing anymore she could have changed now and she kept repeating that one sentence in her mind like a charm, hoping she herself would believe it. What hurt the most was that her father had broke his promise to her. He said he did not remember promising anything of similar nature to her, but that was a big fat lie. And yet, at the same time, she felt incredibly angry at herself for not being able to stand up for herself, for not being able to say 'NO' to that man, for not being able to do anything. But what could she have done? She could not just stand up and run away. There was no way she would have survived all alone and, most probably, her father would have found her sooner or later. Money could do a lot and that was something the Heishi family was never in lack of.

Akira clenched her fists angrily and turned her head to the left to stare out of the window, but instead she noticed Kyoya watching her silently. She beamed a strained smile at him and turned away again. _'Just great, now I have a stalker...'_ She thought and gritted her teeth in irritation.

Meanwhile, the maths teacher came in and the lesson started. Yet, Akira didn't have even the slightest wish to listen to him blab and so she took out her trustworthy mp3 player and started listening to one of her favorite songs over and over again. It was the song "Wild Horses" by Natasha Bedingfield and Akira found it to be rather queerly similar to her entire life. She too wanted to free herself and, yet, she felt scared at the same time. There was so much put on the line, too much to lose. Too much to be worth it.

As she hummed quietly to the rhythm, reciting the words in her head and staring emptily into space, Akira failed to notice the teacher call her or her classmate Kyoya trying to get her attention. She only reacted, when the teacher shook her by her shoulder, yelling something angrily at her. Akira took off the headphones and looked at the teacher angrily. It was the same one, who had bugged her earlier and she did not feel like acting the perfect student for him yet again. The girl simply glowered at the man and her glare must have been quite intense, as the teacher took a step back, stuttering, "A-Akito, s-s-solve the problem on the board."

Her glare changed into an impassive stare and Akira felt like rebelling for once.

"Why?" She asked coldly and slowly and the girls around squealed. Akira did not pay much attention to that, though. Perhaps, she was finally getting used to it.  
Meanwhile, the teacher stammered, taken aback by her question, "Because... well, because I said so!"

That was not something Akira did not expect and she broke out into laughter, as his answer sounded way too childish for someone of his age.

The teacher got as red as a tomato and yelled at her, "Stop laughing right now! And listening to music in class is strictly forbidden!"

Akira stopped laughing and looked at him curiously, "Oh my, really? And? What are you gonna do about it?"

She smirked when the teacher started stuttering again, "I-I... I..."

Perhaps, he was not used to dealing with rebellious teenagers. Akira stood up, her height close to the teachers, took her mp3 player and waved it in front of the baffled man. He flinched at her hand movements, his eyes staring at the contraption warily.

"Maybe... you'd like to take it away?" Akira inquired and the teacher nodded unsurely. The class was now watching the scene silently, wide eyed at the story unfolding to them.

Akira smiled at the teacher, "But you know, it would be so troublesome to take it now... And, after all, you would have to return it to me later."

The teacher nodded, confused as to where the queer student was getting at.

"So, why don't you just break it instead, huh?" Akira grinned.

The teacher flinched, "T-That... That's not..."

"Oh, are you scared? Are you afraid my parents will throw you out of the school and you won't be able to get another job for years?" Akira smirked. "Should I do that for you? If there's no music player, there's no problem anymore, right?"

Her smirk deepened, while the teacher watched with horror as she let go of the player and it fell to the ground. Akira smiled widely with sinister content and stomped on the device with her foot, crushing it to pieces. The teacher and the class gasped at her actions.

"Oh, and it's 52.5," she added, smiling innocently again.

"Wh-What?" The teacher looked up flabbergasted.

"The answer to your question, teacher," Akira motioned to the blackboard.

The teacher looked to the blackboard confused and then back to her again, "Th-That's... correct."

Akira smiled at him again, but her eyes were glaring coldly, "Of course, it is."

The rest of the day passed by quietly. Akira was deep in her own thoughts and for once the girls didn't trouble her, perhaps, spooked away by her behaviour during maths. Yet, the time to go home came inevitably and Akira grumbled ever so quietly, thinking of what's waiting for her there. She got up and headed towards the door slowly, but, of course, Tamaki got in her way again, "Akito!"

She pushed him out of her way, "Not today, Tamaki."

But then, as if to spite her even more, Kyoya just had to ask, "Are you not going to join the Host Club, Akito?"

Akira halted and turned around to face them, answering coldly, "No."

Tamaki stared at her shocked, "What?! Why not?! You promised your mother!.."

Akira let out a snort as she huffed, "Heh. Well then, I lied."

She turned around and headed towards the doors again, not noticing Tamaki glowering at her, "You shouldn't lie to your mother."

Akira halted again, turning her head slightly, "One lie more or less, it doesn't change anything, Tamaki."

And with that she left, her eyes burning with anger, _'Why does it matter whether I lied or not! My whole life is just one huge lie...'_

Akira got home in a luxurious limousine, much like any other child going to Ouran and entered the house, heading straight to her room to change her hideous uniform. She hated these clothes and this huge house and the fact she could no longer walk to school on her own for her mother insisted on her taking the limousine. And yet, no matter how she felt inside, she knew she just had to go on. And what else could she do?

She'd been asking that question for years and had yet to find a way out. And she knew, she will pretend to be a boy again and no one will ever get to know the real Akira. She wasn't even sure if there was a real her somewhere under that pretense. 8 years is a long time and all that time she had been scared of gradually losing herself. Akira knew very well she had forgotten how to smile sincerely or laugh childishly and purely, just for the sake of laughing. She forgot it such a long time ago it seemed like it was a different person. Everything she ever thought of was her mother and how to make her happy, how to please her, how to keep her form getting worried, how to make her smile... it was always her mother. Akira sighed and headed towards the stairways, but she did not reach them as she was stopped by her father, "Akito, what are you doing here so early?"

His sharp voice was cold and unfeeling, his eyes glowering at her sternly. He was in his mid-forties, but sometimes Akira thought he looked way older. As if the spark from his eyes that he always had, was gone now. But, more importantly, she yearned for a kind word from him, for a firm hug, but it's been years since he'd touched her or called out to her warmly. The accident changed a lot in their family.

Keeping herself calm and collected as she always did in his presence, Akira turned to him, "What do you mean?"

"Didn't you join a club? Aren't you supposed to be there now?"

She stared at him shocked, _'Mother must have told him about the Host Club.'_

"I didn't join any clubs," she replied slowly.

Her father frowned irritably, "Then join it. Go back and join that Host Club, or whatever it is."

He turned around to leave, but Akira stopped him, fuming, "NO! I don't want to join that club! I won't join it!"

The Heishi family head turned around, his eyes narrowed in anger, "What are you talking about, you ignorant child? Don't be selfish!"

"Se-Selfish?" Akira stuttered, blinking her eyes as they threatened to water. Of all that he could have blamed her for, he thought she was selfish?!

Meanwhile, her father came closer, keeping his voice low, "Yes, selfish! Your mother is so sick and you act as a little brat! Can't you sacrifice even a little bit for her? She might not have much time left..."

Akira scoffed and her boiling anger finally erupted out as she yelled at her father, "SACRIFICING?! Haven't I sacrificed enough already?! It's been 8 years! 8 YEARS! You promised me, and yet, I don't even have my life anymore! I'm sick of pretending!"

The man stared at her shocked as it was the first time the child had yelled back at him and then he hissed, "Keep your voice down!"

Akira shook her head, unable to stop the tears from falling down, as she continued, "I don't know who I am anymore, Dad!" Her voice quivered as she realized this was the first time she had called him 'Dad' in the past 8 years. "I don't want to live like this anymore, I'm loosing myself. Please, Dad, I need my own life back!"

For a moment, she thought something flickered in his eyes, but then he glowered at her sternly and replied, "I don't understand what you're talking about, Akito!"

"I'm talking about THIS!" Akira cried out. "Have you ever, EVER, called me by MY name?! It's not Akito, I'M NOT AKITO! I'm Akir..."

She could not finish her sentence as his rough hand landed on her cheek, slapping her painfully. The hit was so harsh that the girl staggered backwards, her hand rising up to her burning cheek. This was the first time her father had ever raised his hand against her. This was also the first time she had rebelled like this against him.

"Shut up! NEVER mention that name in this house! It does not exist here!" Her father growled at her venomously and Akira stared at him wide eyed.

"Are you... saying... that I... I... don't exist... any more?"

Her father looked down at her coldly, "You're Akito and that's that. Think more of those you love! Don't you love your own mother?!"

"Love... my mother?" Akira echoed, her hand coupling her burning cheek. _'Do I love my mother?..'_

"Stop playing around already! You're lucky your mother isn't here and didn't hear any of this. She would have been devastated," Her father gave her a cold look. "Just go back to school and join that Host Club. At least make your mother happy, you useless child!"

He turned around and left, leaving the girl alone. She stood there, tears running down her cheeks, thinking back about her life, her entire life, consisting of lies and fake smiles... What was it all for? Didn't she do it all for her mother's sake? Because she loved her? Does she STILL love her?

"I don't know... I don't know anymore," Akira whispered, biting her lip. _'Just... who am I? Akito? Akira? No, she doesn't exist any longer, does she? Akira...'_

* * *

She was sitting in the backseat of the family limousine, going back to school. She was not sure if there was another choice. Was she given one? It did not sound like that. Her father was rich and powerful, his word was the law and there was no running away, there was no way of telling the truth...

Akira sat there, her eyes watching the landscapes pass by, her fingers clutching her phone with such force, they were turning white. She was considering calling her brother Touya, she was thinking of asking him if she had finally gone crazy. Perhaps, even asking for help… Touya was always the one who treated her like a girl she was, took her out of that stifling house, took her to the shops and bought her cute little stuff she'd later hide in the furthest corner of her drawers, treated her to chocolate milkshakes and ice cream with candy toppings, made her laugh and cry tears of joy. He was her one and only brother now.

'_Touya... help me...'_ She looked at the phone, doubt in her watery eyes. She knew how busy he was, working hard abroad. He wanted to open up his own recreational hotel, separately from his father. A business of his own. And she... she had always relied on him, always. Akira clutched the phone even harder.

'_No... I can't. I have to stop relying on him. I just have to be strong. Yes, strong. It's nothing much, just do what I always do. Always...' _She sighed. _'Akito... Why did you have to go so suddenly?.. Why were YOU the one to leave? If it was me... If it was me that died back then, everything would be fine, just perfect... No one would miss me, anyways, would they? Akira is not needed here in this world. No one even remembers her. No one misses her, no one needs her, except for myself, and perhaps, Touya... But when he's not here, Akira does not exist either... And you, Akito, you are the one who should be here, not me. Not me.'_

Another tear slipped down her cheek as she whispered barely audibly, "I should have been the one to die..."


	9. Chapter 9

**Yay! I got more reviews! ^^ Thank you so much, guys, eh, girls! . I really really loved your comments. I know the Host Club members and Kyoya might be out of character sometimes, so just bear with me, please. Well, I can only hope I live up to your expectations and the story doesn't get too cliche XD**

* * *

Akira stood in front of the doors of the third music room, clenching her fists, gathering her courage. _'When I pass this door, it's all over. My dreams of being a girl again, my dreams of my own life...'_

She closed her eyes, "I'm Akito now... Akito."

She took a deep breath, opened her eyes and pushed the doors of the third music room. Rose petals flew straight into her face and she shoved them away, trying to realize where it could have come from.

"Welcome!" She raised her head to see all of the Host Club in front of her.

"Oh! It's Akito! Akito the strangler!" The twins grinned widely and Akira stepped closer.

Tamaki walked to meet her, but strangely enough he did not start blabbing as he usually did. Akira let out a short sigh and then smiled shyly, "I came to ask if I could join your club. Or am I too late?"

His eyes grew wide and suddenly he grinned happily, jumping in front of her, "OH, but of course! I knew you would change your mind! Right, Kyoya?"

"It does seem so," Kyoya agreed, pushing his glasses up. "Welcome to the Host club, Akito."

Akira smiled and nodded, while other members crowded around her, welcoming her to the club. She soon got her first clients too, as some girls ran up to her, asking her to sit with them. Tamaki was completely overjoyed and so Akira went together with the girls to chat.

* * *

Kyoya's POV

So, he came back, after all. I'm sure Akito will make a very nice addition to the Host Club. Though I still can't get him right. I am always quite proud of my ability to read people's faces, but his is just... it's as if he's wearing a mask all the time and I can't grasp his real thoughts at all. I guess, we're kind of similar. I came closer to the sofa he was sitting at, having decided to watch him carefully. And then, I noticed something queer. His right cheek was slightly pinker than his left and I narrowed my eyes in wonder. It looked like he was… slapped? I cocked my head to a side at such an unexpected assumption. Who would raise a hand against him and why? Perhaps, I was wrong. I averted my attention to the girls he was talking to and listened to his conversation, ready to jot some notes down.

"A-Akito-kun, this morning... i-in class, you broke your Mp3 player and shouted at the teacher... and I..." A girl stuttered shyly, blushing all kinds of red and I watched Akito make a sudden movement towards the girl. He touched her chin with his hand, caressing the girl's jaw line. She blushed again.

"Did you like that, babe?"

I watched Akito rather surprised. What in the world was he doing? The girl blushed a deeper red and started stuttering something unintelligible, while her friends squealed in delight. Akito let go of the girl and stood up. I watched him intrigued.

"A-Akito-kun?.." The girl stuttered, surprised.

Akito sneered at her and grinned, "Don't mix me with that momma's boy, babe. Come!" He grabbed the girl's hand and pulled her into a tight hug. "Such a cute little baby like you needs a more... experienced man."

The others girls shrieked and the girl in Akito's arms squirmed, blushing intensely. Akito grinned and turned her around, bending her down at her waistline, his one arm holding her back firmly, "I can show you so much more, my dear. Things, that only two can do."

He winked at her playfully and the girl gasped, hyperventilating. I watched quietly, trying to figure out where this was going. Well, I had to admit, the play was rather interesting and the girls seemed to like immensely. Hmmm... what should I call this type...

"A-Aki-ki-to..." The girl stuttered again and Akito pulled her back up, helping her steady herself on her feet.

"I'm not Akito, my dear baby," he smirked.

Huh? My eyes widened a bit. What does he mean by that?

"Just call me Aki, babe. Aki."

What? Aki? Ohhhh… Interesting.

"Waaaahhh!!! Split-pesonality! It's split-pesonality!" The girls squealed with delight and I smirked, jotting it down into my notebook. Well, that's decided then, I guess.

*+*

Your POV

Akira smirked, as she giggled in her head, "This is fun! Maybe I should become an actor in the future. Now, to end with a bang!"

"Aki?" The girl echoed the name in a whisper and at that moment Akira grabbed her head as if it was hurting and seated herself on the edge of the couch, letting out a moan.

"Ah..." She gasped and huffed, noticing the worried girls crowded around her. She glanced up at them sadly.

"A-Akito-kun! Are you... alright?"

Akira nodded, "I'm sorry... I just felt dizzy for a moment. It seems I worried you and I apologize."

"Kyyahhh! It's the nice Akito-kun again!"

She looked at them with a worried expression on her face, her voice apologetic, "Oh no, did I do something... inappropriate?"

The girls shrieked again, clapping their hands together in glee.

"Well, it seems you will be the Split-personality type," Akira heard Kyoya say as he walked over to our group, smiling at her.

She acted out share surprise, widening her eyes at him, "Oh, no! Did he come out again?" Akira turned to the girls. "I am so very sorry, my ladies. Please, I can only beg for your forgiveness for making you see such a rough side of mine."

She casted her glance down shyly and the girls started squealing and trying to comfort her, "No, Akito-kun, it's alright. Really!"

"But... but did you know about it?" Another girl asked and Akira shifted her glance sideways.

"Yes, it's been happening to me for some time. I just lose myself and when I come back, I don't remember what happened. I think he calls himself Aki though, or so I've been told by my friends."

The girls nodded in anticipation, "Yes, yes! Aki... Waah, so kawaiiii!"

Akira smiled at them shyly, laughing inside, _'Gosh, they are so gullible!'_

As Akira continued chatting with the girls, her lips smiling and her eyes watching them gently, the sound of piano reached her ears and she turned to see Tamaki playing. He started off slowly, but then the melody picked up the pace a little. It was incredibly soothing. Akira closed her eyes for a moment, feeling the emotions flood her. He was really good, so good, that she felt overwhelmed by the melody and the feelings put in it. She liked music and the piano and the sounds of it reached into her heart, shattering away everything else. Akira closed her eyes, listening to it silently, with a soft smile on her face. Music was something she simply loved and enjoyed listening to. When Tamaki finished playing, she stood up and clapped. He looked at her surprised, but then smiled gently and nodded his head.

The girls squealed again, "Kyyyahhh! Akito-kuuun!"

She smiled at them, remembering her duties as a host, "I'm sorry, my ladies, I was just captured by Tamakis music."

"A-Akito-kun? Do you... do you play some instrument too?"

Akira nodded smiling, "Yes."

"Wh-What instrument?"

"Well, the piano, for example."

"Waaaah!" The girls squealed. "Can you play us something?.."

"Uh... I, umm..."

"Yes!" Tamaki ran up to her. "Play us something, Akito!"

The girls pleaded too and Akira just smiled confused, when everyone gathered around, interested in her playing.

She sighed, "Just don't expect much, I'm not a genius or anything and I haven't played for a long time. So, I might be a bit rusty."

She sat down by the piano, thinking of what to play. Strangely enough, only one melody came to her mind, as she ran her fingers through the piano keys gently...


	10. Chapter 10

**And another one! ^^ Oh, and the music that Akira is playing is the Victor's Piano Solo from the movie Corpse Bride. I'm sure you know of it. ~.^**

* * *

Akira took in a breath and her fingers landed on the piano, gently trying out the keys. And then, she started with a sudden vigor, closing her eyes, her fingers moving swiftly without the need to look down, the melody etched into her mind and heart deeply. It was the melody that her brother Akito loved the most and always yearned to learn, but never did.

She played wholeheartedly, forgetting everything and everyone around her, putting all of her emotions in it, her anger, sadness, pain, hurt and loneliness. Through her closed eyes, memories of ancient times flashed and played inside her head, the years and days spent happily with her both brothers, her twin brother. Her most precious memories, something that could not be returned or regained. Lost. Her mind wondered why it happened, why everything turned out this way? Her brother Akito was the most important person to her, he was her other half, a part of her soul. He was her twin. He understood her best, but he was gone in a second, just like that. And no one could ever fill up the emptiness in her heart, the void that appeared on that day and grew bigger with each passing hour...

The Host Club and the girls watched her silently, captivated by her sincere playing. Perhaps, she was not incredibly good with the piano, and perhaps she made mistakes or missed notes, but no one noticed that as the vivid emotions and feelings flowed clearly together with the sounds of the keys and moved the hearts of those listening.

* * *

That was the day that Akira gained the trust and the affections of both the Host Club and her female classmates. She became a host in the Ouran Host Club, and, despite her reluctance and fears, it was not as bad as she expected it. Actually, she had to admit it was kind of fun to be there, why, with all the ruckus the twins created and the ever fantasizing Tamaki, it was never a boring day in school. And soon, to her surprise, Akira realized the Host Club became a precious place to her, a place, where she could act more freely and wildly, especially with her so called Aki personality. She did not even think much when she chose the name Aki for her wilder side, but soon she felt glad she did so. Aki was the name her brother Touya always called her and even though it was not her full name, she felt a little bit closer to herself, being called that. In the end, the Host Club that she despised so much, brought her more joy than she would have ever expected.

Also, she got to know the Host Club members better and they clicked together quite well, though she was still rather stiff with all the socializing stuff, when she wasn't acting as Aki. She was not used to trusting an outsider and even in her old school she was more of a loner than an attention grabber.

Still, the Host Club members were fun to be around with and she only had to be careful when changing her clothes into the ridiculous costumes that Tamaki chose for them. She called the blond the Drama King and he was such a scatter brain she sometimes wondered what was going on in that head of his. If there was someone in this school, who wouldn't recognize her as a girl, even if she waltzed in with an evening gown on, it would have to be Tamaki. She giggled at the thought of her in a glittering and long dress and Tamaki calling her a trans. Ha. Idiot. Still, it was weird how no one else ever suspected her and Akira felt rather depressed by the fact that she was not feminine at all. Perhaps, that's why she was so good at this, who knew.

Yet, after a deeper glance at her new friends, if she could only call them that, Akira finally decided she should be most wary around Kyoya and Honey with Mori. She believed Honey to be the sharpest one, but she also noticed he wasn't the one to stick his nose into others business and she could never imagine Mori saying something like, "Oh, you know, guys, Akiro is a G-I-R-L. Hn." Nope, it seemed like a crime to even think of it. Now Kyoya was a different story and she didn't like his scheming ways. Not at the very least. Sometimes, she would catch him watching her and it made her uneasy. It was as if he was trying to categorize her or see her through and every time he scribbled something down into his notebook, Akira would catch herself shivering and trying to remember if she had done anything suspicious or let something slip, even a smallest detail that would betray her real identity.

Speaking of the other members, Akira enjoyed being with Haruhi, simply because she was a girl and pretending to be a guy, even if for different causes. Haruhi did not seem to care much about gender and Akira felt envious of her. She herself made quite a deal out of all the situation and she did not want to act as a boy any longer than she had to. And yet, she tried not to think how long will that be.

Still, her favorites in the Host club were the twins Hikaru and Kaoru. She could just sit back and watch them constantly. Every time she looked at them, she was reminded of her brother and Akira treasured every single memory of him she had. Strangely enough, only Haruhi could differentiate between the twins, though she had a rising suspicion that Kyoya could too. Still, Akira found this fact to be really weird, for to her the two boys seemed to be as different as day and night. And, she soon got a chance to prove it.

It was yet another day in the Host Club and Akira was sitting and chatting with the girls, when she heard the twins play their little brotherly love games. She could swear, she really was unable to understand why the girls liked it so much. A bunch of perverts. She did have a suspicion this might have something to do with the fact that she hadn't acted as a girl for years. Perhaps, she was missing some vital details of 'girly' upbringing.

As she contemplated on that and how to actually get back her feminine side if she ever got such an opportunity, the twins came sprinting to her, grinning mischievously. Akira let out a light sigh, _'I bet they just thought of a new way to toy with me.'_ Lately, the twins were around her a lot, making fun of her and dragging her into their little games, but she did not mind and, of course, Haruhi finally got some free time for herself for the twins exchanged their Haruhi toy for an Akira toy. Yet, Akira knew how lonely and cold it was not to be accepted individually, perhaps, even better than the twins. After all, she was no longer a twin and no longer an individual she wanted to be.

Meanwhile, the twins laughed and squatted down in front of her. She once again admired the bright colours of their hair, as Hikaru had dyed it pink and Kaoru blue. As always, Akira had no difficulties recognizing the two.

"Say, Akito, let's..."

"...play a game!"

The twins parted the sentence again in their usual manner and Akira cocked her brow wonderingly.

"Really now? I have yet to see you two NOT playing games here," she smirked at them and they laughed. "So, what game is it this time?"

The twins grinned again and Akira stared at them curiously.

"The Guess Which One is Hikaru and Kaoru Game!" Suddenly, they shouted in unison and Akira frowned in confusion.

"Huh? What's there to guess?"

"Argh, not this one again," she heard Haruhi mutter from behind her as she leaned on the couch.

Meanwhile, the girls squealed in glee and one of them shrieked, "Oh, I know, I know!"

Akira averted her gaze at the girl and the twins turned to her as well, "Really? Then, who is who?"

The girl blushed a tiny bit, "Hikaru has blue hair and Kaoru pink!"

Akira merely raised her brow in surprise and Haruhi sighed. These girls really weren't very perceptive, were they?

"Huuuuh? And why do you think that?" Kaoru asked, grinning like an idiot.

"Because, because..." The girl squirmed. "Hikaru likes blue color the most and Kaoru pink!"

The other girls squealed and Akira just shook her head, rolling her eyes at the stupidity of the girl.

The twins grinned widely, "Rrriiiight!"

Akira sighed, having decided it was time to intervene, "Wrong! You had it all messed up!"

The girls, the surprised twins and even Haruhi turned their heads to her, wondering what drove her to say that.

"Well, at least you're right about one thing," Akira continued. "Hikaru likes blue and Kaoru likes pink. But, the one with pink hair is Hikaru and the one with blue - Kaoru."

The twins stared at her in slight shock, unblinking.

"Huh? Why do you say that, Akito?" The girl wondered and Akira shrugged.

"It's simple, really. You said it yourself - Hikaru likes blue color and Kaoru likes pink. Therefore, Kaoru had dyed his hair blue to please his brother and Hikaru did the same. After all, you can't see your favorite colour if you dye your own hair with it. But you can always admire it if it is your brother who dyes his hair in that colour."

The girls cocked their heads in wonder and Haruhi giggled, stepping away, while the two twin brothers continued to stare at their newest toy with their eyes wide.

And so Hikaru and Kaoru gaped at Akira for a few moments, for she had guessed the reason completely right. No one else had ever explained it so well as if reading their minds. Then, they finally gathered themselves up from the ground, but that wasn't the last time Akira saw them that day. They came back later again, with their hair dyed back to the original colour and dared her to play again and again. And she did. Akira played that game countless times that day, always getting them right. It was incredibly simple to her and at first she could not understand why they kept bugging her, not until the twins trotted up to her just before the Host Club was closing.

Akira gave them a stern look and sighed, "Hikaru is on the left, and Kaoru is on the right. And now thank you for your atention, but I'm leaving."

Yet, she did not leave as Kaoru grabbed her arm in a sudden motion, "Wait!"

"How can you recognize us so well?" Hikaru asked and his voice sounded rather serious.

Akira turned to face them and surprised she found they weren't grinning any longer. Their expressions were serious and wondering. For a moment, they reminded her of herself and her twin brother. Yes, they used to be like that too. Insecure. At that time, her brother was the whole world to Akira and she was his. They played together, laughed together, ran away from parents together, got consoled by Touya together, cried and even got angry together. There was a whole different world to them, a world of only them two, where no one could trespass. But it was wrong, all wrong. It shattered, that world broke and Akira was neither able to get up and leave that abandoned place nor create a new one. Instead, she felt like she was left imprisoned in that burst bubble, trying to win the affections of those, who were still left to her, to gain their acceptance and love. But not even her broken family could understand her completely. No one besides her dead twin could ever do it. Perhaps, she was too late in opening up to others, perhaps, she still hasn't done it for she feared it too much.

And so Akira looked up at the twins, who were still waiting for her answer hopefully. She knew what they were afraid of, for she had been scared too, once upon a time. She knew what they were thinking for she did think so too. In them, she could still see herself and her brother from 8 years ago. She knew exactly what they were feeling and that was why she felt the need to tell them, to help them break out...

"It hurts," the words found their own way out and her voice rang in the room softly, but firmly.

The twins gave her a surprised look and the other Host Club members gathered around, having noticed the queer atmosphere around the trio.

"It hurts," Akira repeated a bit louder, her voice cracking slightly. "It hurts and it's lonely. It feels as if a half of your heart is ripped out and only an empty space is left. A dark spot somewhere deep and nothing can fill it up. Ever. It's as if your world dies, as if the ground beneath you crumbles and shatters."

"Wha..." The twins stared at her confused.

"That's how it feels, so treasure each other well," Akira glanced at them sadly. "You can not be together forever, for that is impossible. So stop shutting yourselves out, let in someone in that world and begin to trust your friends... It doesn't matter if they understand you or not, isn't it more fun that way?"

Hikaru and Kaoru glanced at each other and then back at Akira, their brows furrowed in the confusion they felt.

"You two are nothing alike, so live the way you want to live," Akira smiled encouragingly at them and the twins stammered.

"Why... How do you know this?.."

"Because he had a twin," Kyoya interrupted, his voice quiet, yet incredibly clear.

It was as if a bucket of cold water and Akira froze, _'How did HE know that?'_

"Akito had a twin sister," Kyoya continued and Akira's eyes trailed away to him in shock. "That's probably the reason he can understand you so well."

The twins looked shocked at Kyoya and then back at Akira, "You have a twin too?"

Akira frowned, casting her glance away from all of them, trying not to look them in the eyes, "No."

"Huh?"

Kyoya looked down sadly, "His twin sister died in a car crash 8 years ago."

The twins' eyes widened and they gasped. They could not even imagine a world without each other, a world filled with loneliness and emptiness. Only now did they realize the true meaning of Akira's words.

"Akito..." They whispered, looking at her sadly, almost crying, but they did not know what to say or how to console her. They could not understand her pain.

Akira looked up in a sudden motion and shook her head.

"I don't need it. Stop pitying me. No, don't even start!"

Her eyes glazed over with anger and rage, _'You're talking as if I'm dead, but I'm alive. It was Akito that died, not me.'_ She wanted to scream and shout, to let it all out, but old habits died hard and all she could get out was a hardly understandable hiss, "You don't know a thing, so don't pity me. I myself created all this mess."

The Host Club stared at her surprised, unsure as to what they should do or say. They felt like something needed to be said or done, but could not decide what.

'_Yes, only I am to blame for this. If I wasn't so weak, if only I had said 'no' that day, if only I hadn't tried to win the love of my mother in this foul way... NO, it's too late now...'_

"Too late now," Akira whispered quietly and turned around, not wanting to see their glances, pitying her and her dead sister, who actually wasn't dead at all. Without as much as another thought, she ran quickly to the doors and left, not wishing to hear any comforting words from them.


	11. Chapter 11

**Thanks' for the nice reviews again! ^^ I'm so glad there are people who are not too lazy to type what they think XD Anyways, to answer Shadowess question, I really didn't mention any specific time, cause I had not decided it myself. But it's about a few weeks since Akira joined the club and got used to being a host and had the talk with the twins. Not too much time had passed and everything will be happening pretty fast in the story, I think, cause I'm not gonna write about her every single day in the club. lol Anyways, enough of me rambling here. ~.^**

* * *

Kyoya's POV

"I don't need it. Stop pitying me. No, don't even start!" Akito yelled at us furiously, her eyes looking at us enraged. Perhaps, mentioning his sister was a mistake. It seems that even after eight years it still is quite a sensitive topic for him.

"You don't know a thing, so don't pity me. I myself created all this mess," he continued in a low growl and I arched my brow in surprise, his words puzzling me. What could that mean? What mess is he talking about? Maybe, joining the Host Club? No, there must be something else. I noticed his eyes had a strange shadow pass over them, and then he whispered so silently, I almost didn't hear. If I hadn't stood beside Akito, I definitely would have missed it.

"Too late now," he whirled around and ran out quickly as if not wanting to see our sympathy. I bowed my head, staring at the floor. I could not understand his pain, that was true. I've never had anyone so close, I could never understand his loss. But then, why did I feel like I really wanted to be there for him?..

I closed my eyes for a short moment, diverting my thoughts towards something I could actually crack. Like, for example, what did he mean by those words "Too late now"? Just what exactly was Akito hiding? I averted my gaze to the doors, trying to make some assumptions as to what he could possible have to hide, but I failed to do so. Akito was a real mystery to me. His personality was so vivid and out of standard, I simply failed to categorize him. Sometimes, he was so calm and collected and at times he was being funny and joked around. And then, there these times, when he would just snap from a single word said to him. I would have to remember his sensitive spots for future reference.

My musings were interrupted by Tamaki and I turned to him, "I didn't know at all... that Akito... I guess this is why he acted so strangely at times.

Tamaki smiled sadly, while the members of the Host Club stood silent, each immersed in their own thoughts. Then, suddenly, Tamaki raised his head up and I just knew he had another stroke of geniality, "Listen up! We must help him out. Cause that's what the Host Club exists for in the first place!"

"But how?" The twins looked at Tamaki and asked in unison. "What do you propose we do, my lord?"

"Hm, hm," Tamaki hugged the twins from behind. "We will organize the best birthday party for him EVER!

"Oooohhh!" The twins livened up and their eyes glistened brightly with new vigor.

"With lots of cake!" Honey joined the fun, throwing his arms up in the air.

"Hn," Mori agreed with him silently, as always, though I did have my suspicions that he too had taken quite a liking to our newest club member.

Haruhi only sighed, shrugging her shoulders, "I only hope this doesn't turn into a catastrophe..."

"No, it will not," I smirked, readjusting my glasses. "I will make sure of that."

Haruhi glanced at me surprised, "Why? What merit does it give to you?"

I froze for a moment. Indeed, why do I feel such a strong urge to get involved into this?..

* * *

Akira sighed as she walked into the 3rd music room, scanning it carefully for any signs or clues. It's been almost a week now since the incident with the twins and she was starting to feel restless. The Host Club was kind to her, maybe even too kind. Akira guessed it was due to the fact that they pitied her because of her 'dead sister'. Yet, they didn't show it too much and didn't bring that topic up anymore, and for that she was grateful. It was hard for Akira to talk about her so called dead sister, because, after all, she wasn't dead. One would think that after eight years she would have gotten used to stuff like this, but it still hurt and the more time passed, the stronger it pained her. Ironic, wasn't it? On the other hand, she never really had to talk about it, because even the name of Akira was forbidden in her household to protect her mother from mental shock and unnecessary questions. She could still remember the last time she tried mentioning to her mother she used to have a daughter... It took medical personnel, a few bottles of pills and almost a week of hospital care to get her back into normal condition. After that, Akira had never tried to bring it up again. She was too scared. Too scared to see that total rejection in her mother's eyes.

And talking about her mother, lady Sakura was being all mysterious too. Suspicious, even. The Host Club had been acting sort of strange as well. They would all stay up later, but Akira was never invited and sometimes she'd catch them whispering to each other. Yep, something was going on. And, judging from the looks of it, Akira had some growing suspicions and they were not in her favor.

She suspected that her mother and the Ouran Host Club were planning something together. She made quite logical assumptions it could have been her birthday, but that was not what troubled her the most. The problem lied elsewhere. If her mother was really cooperating with the Host Club, there was a huge possibility of them mentioning Akira and that... Nope, it would be best to not even think of it.

And so, Akira sat down on the sofa, chatting with the girls nonchalantly, but at the same time she was watching the members of the Host Club carefully. _'Should I just approach them directly?.. No, they seem to be having fun planning everything behind my back. And I can't be sure they would tell me everything. No, maybe it would be better to extort a confession from someone... oh, yes, that could work… now... let's see, who's here the easiest one to affect?'_

Akira glanced around, her eyes stopping by each member, looking for her prey. _'Tamaki?.. No, I can't really communicate well with idiots and I bet it all was his idea... The twins? Nope. They are having too much fun indulging in this. Hm. Haruhi, maybe? No, I bet she knows how to keep secrets. Honey? Scary...'_

She shuddered and looked more, _'Mori... Hn. I doubt I'd get even one word out of him.' _Akira sighed, looking at the last member left - Kyoya. _'...'_

Her eyes traveled around the room once again. '...'

Then, her gaze halted at Kyoya's figure one more time_. 'Oooo-kaaaayyy... I think I'll try my luck with Honey. At least he has a vulnerable spot.'_

As soon as she got some free time from her clients, Akira made her way to Honey's table and plopped down beside him, smiling in a friendly manner. She took one of the slices of the cake with strawberries on top and ate a bit, chatting with Honey and the surrounding girls. It was not too suspicious for she did come to Honey's table to have a bit of his cakes, occasionally.

As the conversations went on, Akira watched the cakes and cookies disappear from the table and into the endless pit called Honey's stomach. _'I don't get it, just where the hell it all goes...'_ She wondered, watching as the last slice of the strawberry flavored cake went deep into Honey's mouth. Well, to be exact, the last slice was in her plate, almost untouched, and so far it was all according to her schemes. She knew what she had to do now.

And so Akira smirked to herself as she put her plate onto the table, the huge slice of cake coming into the view of Honey's eyes.

"Wah, what a delicious cake!" She exclaimed happily, watching Honey from the corner of her eyes. He teared up and practically gobbled up the cake with his eyes.

"Ca-Cake..." Akira could swear she saw real tears in his eyes.

She smiled and pushed the cake to him across the table, "You can have it if you want. I just need a teeny-weeny favor." She continued to smile innocently at him.

"Really?" Honey lit up as if he was a light bulb on a Christmas tree and jumped up energetically. "What is it? What is it?"

But then, Akira felt shivers run down her spine and as he glanced that way, she shuddered at the sight of Mori glaring at her in such a way that she could almost see little ninja stars flying her way.

_'Scary... Really, sometimes I'm not sure which one of them is scarier - Mori or Honey...'_ She thought and shook her head, trying to get rid of the fear Mori had just instilled into her. She had never ever heard of anyone dying from a glare. Right?

And so she leaned towards Honey, whispering, "I know you've been busy with something recently and I just wanted to know what that is..."

She flashed him a friendly smile, but as soon as she looked up at his eyes, Akira jump away immediately.

"Was that your intention all along?" Honey asked in a low voice, his eyes staring at her with such intent that Akira froze for a moment, realizing he had seen straight through her.

_'Okay, that solves one question at least,' _she thought to herself. '_Now I know it's Honey, who's scarier. Definitely.'_

Suddenly, Honey smiled at her in his usual childish manner again and she sighed with relief.

"Isn't it more fun to be surprised?" He asked her, but Akira merely sighed in response.

'_Not if it's gonna give my mother a week in hospital and house arrest for life for me.'_

"Fine," she finally yielded. "Just tell me one thing then. Is my mother involved? Are you meeting up with her?"

Akira looked at Honey hopefully, who was just about to say something, when Kyoya interfered, "I believe there are clients waiting for you, Akito."

But of course. It just HAD to be him. She glared at the glasses genius, angry at his interruption, but merely got up and shrugged.

"Whatever. Eat up your cake, Honey-senpai. I'll find out what I want by myself," and with that, she smirked at Kyoya triumphantly. "Plan B, commence."

Kyoya merely arched his brow at her declaration, following her with his dark eyes, his thoughts hidden from the rest of the world.

* * *

  
As Akira ducked behind a corner, hiding from her mother, she felt as if she was suddenly starring in some action spy movie. Well, jokes aside, the situation was not that good, actually, it was not good at all.

She was hiding in the corridor of the Ouran School and secretly following her own mother... Is there any need to say more? Oh yes, she was now in the 3rd floor corridor, where the 3rd music room was. No other clues needed...

Biting her lip, Akira watched as her mother turned the handle and went into the Host Club room. She sighed. _'This is a nightmare... God, what did I ever do to you?!'_

Shaking her head, she walked to the doors and wrapped her fingers around the handle. _'Damn... I really don't wanna go in there... But what if they mention my real name in front of her? It's a miracle it hasn't happened yet. No, it's just too dangerous to leave it like this... Alright, I'll just go in quickly and tell someone the problem, then leave. Just go in and go out. Easy as taking a candy from a child, right? I wonder if anyone has ever tried it… If the child is anything like Honey, then, boy, hold on to your dear life…'_

"Argh," she grumbled as she shook her head, trying to kick out all the unnecessary thoughts out of her mind. She took a deep breath and turned the handle.


	12. Chapter 12

**Well, this one is a bit sad again, but the next chapters will be a bit more light-hearted. ^^ And yes, sometimes I too wanna slap my characters or strangle them. By the end of the story you will definitely be hating both her mother and father. lol I think I'm making this story into a really tragic drama now. Oh, and about gifts, I need help with that! The party will be in just a few chapters, and I'd be grateful for some ideas as to what they could be. Shadowess had already mentioned a few, but if you guys want more gifts that you think would make Akira happy, just write them in the review! ^^ Thanks'! **

* * *

Akira entered the Host Club, her usual smile on her face, as she hoped she was not too late. Well, the possibility of them mentioning Akira was not that high, actually, but it still was there and she feared it could turn into a catastrophe. No one was supposed to know about the real situation in the Heishi family. Her father had gone to great lengths to keep everything well covered up in order to protect his wife, who was too fragile to accept the truth and one thing was absolute – no one was to know about it.

As Akira went in, her sudden appearance shocked the poor Host Club, as all of them turned to the sound of the creaking door. She widened her smile and waved at them, "Hi, everyone!"

Tamaki literally froze in place and she could see him crumble away. Her mother seemed shocked and confused as she stared at her so called son. Kyoya was the one who walked up to her first, pushing his glasses up.

"I see. Was that your plan B - spying on your own mother?" He asked, chuckling.

Akira smiled at him innocently, "Who says so? It's pure coincidence, I think."

She passed by him to greet her mother, who seemed to be lost as to what to do, as well as the other club members. Akira kissed her mother on the cheek and turned around to the Host Club members, "I'm sorry if I intruded, I can see you're all busy with something."

Sakura smiled confused, "Well, that..."

"It's okay," Akira turned to her mother, smiling. "I know I'm just in the way and I'll leave soon. I just had to speak to…" She paused, trying to decide to whom she could trust this particular secret. "…to Kyoya. Urgently. As soon as I'm done, I'll leave, so don't worry, you can have fun, just don't tire yourself out."

Akira smiled at her mother again and lady Sakura returned the smile. She then turned to Kyoya, who was staring at her almost curiously, "Can we talk, Kyoya, please?"

He nodded curtly and the two walked a bit away from the others, so that her mother could not hear them. Akira glanced at lady Sakura, who had now resumed her chatting with Honey about cakes, as it would seem. As if there was anything else that would make Honey's eyes tear up and glisten with glee.

Akira sighed and turned to Kyoya, appreciating the fact he was waiting patiently for her to start, "My mother is very important to me. She may not look like it, but she's very fragile."

Kyoya remained silent and merely nodded his head, his eyes watching her attentively.

"Well, to cut it short. I know you're planning something, probably for my birthday," Akira continued, but Kyoya interrupted her.

"Now why would you think so?"

"Look," she glowered at him slightly. "I don't care what it is, as long as my mother is happy. I don't have the right to take it away from her."

She glanced back at her mother sadly, who was now listening to the twins chatter. Akira stared at them for a moment, half listening to what they were speaking of. They seemed to be telling Sakura something about how they used to play together in their childhood.

She turned to Kyoya again, "I don't know how to say this..."

"Why don't you start from very beginning, then?" Kyoya suggested and pushed his glasses up in his usual manner.

Akira smiled somewhat sadly, "Heh, that would be a long story."

She let out a soft sigh and then added, "Just... do me one favor, please. When my mother is present, don't mention-"

Yet, she stopped in mid-sentence as suddenly the meaning of her mother's words reached her ears. While talking to Kyoya, she was half-listening to the conversation between her mother and the twins and now the words lady Sakura uttered had rang an alarm in Akira's head, "Oh! I always wanted to have twins! So wonderful, I think! I mean, Akito's older brother didn't have much time to play with him. It would have been better if he had a sibling his age. Oh, a twin would have been amazing!"

"Huh?" Hikaru and Kaoru exclaimed in unison, exchanging confused glances with each other.

With horror Akira watched the scene unfold in front of her, _'NO, NO, NO!!! I MUST do something!..'_

She quickly spun around, her head spinning from all the possible implications the conversation could cause and Kyoya watched her slightly baffled by her sudden queer behavior. Meanwhile, Akira panicked, her mind lost as to what she should do, searching for any kind of an excuse to interrupt them, and the conversation went on.

"But didn't you already have them?" Tamaki asked confused, his brows knitting together.

Akira searched frantically around, for anything, ANYthing she could use.

"Yeah, Akito had..." Hikaru started and Kaoru continued. "Akira."

And then, Akira finally noticed Kyoya was holding a pen in his hands.

"Akira?" Meanwhile, her mother wondered confused.

"I'll borrow this!" Akira grabbed the pen out of Kyoya's hands and spun around to throw it. Now she was glad she took that martial arts course.

"Yes, his sis-OUCH!" Kaoru yelled out as the pen stuck his leg painfully as Akira threw it full force.

Not wasting the time, she ran towards him immediately as everyone leaned to the hurt Kaoru.

"Are you alright?" Lady Sakura asked worriedly.

"Yea..."

"OH MY GOD!" Akira skid to a stop in front of Kaoru. "Are you ok, Kaoru? Hikaru, why don't you take him to the sofa?"

"No, I'm ok!" Kaoru started saying, but Akira kicked him hard into his leg and he screamed in pain again. "Ouuch! Why..."

"See? Don't act all manly! If it hurts, it hurts!" Akira pushed him towards the couch gently. "Come on, Hikaru, help him out!"

Hikaru gave her a confused look, but nodded his head, understanding only that Akira wanted them gone. Now.

"Oh my, is he gonna be ok?" Sakura wondered and Akira turned to her with a smile, kicking the pen away with her shoe.

"Of course," she turned around to face her mother with a smile. "He's a strong boy."

Meanwhile, Tamaki rushed over to the twins fretting over what happened and Akira sighed with slight relief. Instead, she was joined by Honey and Mori, who came closer because of all the ruckus. _'Well, these two know how to keep quiet, I don't have to fear them saying something unnecessary.'_

"Oh, that's right! The twins were telling me something…" Her mother knitted her brows thoughtfully. "Something about Akira… Hmm."

'_Damn!'_ Akira cursed in her mind as she rushed to speak, fearing someone else might say something first.

"Akira?" She put on a tender smile. "Don't you remember her, mother? She was my friend in elementary school. A very cute girl."

"Really?" Her mother glanced at Akira thoughtfully. "I don't recall anyone by that name, though it does sound familiar to me."

Akira flinched at her mother's words, but masked it with another smile. _'Don't recall anyone... how about ME?'_

"It was a long time ago," she said instead. "Forget it, mother."

Silence fell between them and Akira stole a glance at Honey and Mori, who kept quiet, though, without a doubt, they were slightly confused. Kyoya shifted beside her and she noticed he had his pen back in his hand. His eyes were gazing at her impassively, but Akira knew better.

"Say," she flashed another smile at her mother, knowing she needed to take her mind away from that name. "Have you seen the Garden already?"

"The Garden?" Sakura's eyes lit up immediately.

"Yes," Akira nodded, still smiling. "I heard there are roses even from England here. Would you like to see them?"

"Oh, yes! That would be so nice!" Her mother smiled widely and Akira knew the name that could have caused so much distress was already out of her head.

And so, Akira took her by her hand, "Let's go then, I'll show you around and then we'll come back real quickly."

Her mother nodded happily as a child and Akira led her away, casting a quick glance at the confused faces of the Ouran Host Club members.

* * *

Kyoya's POV

Akito went out with his mother and I followed them with my eyes, feeling rather confused. How come she said she doesn't know Akira? Isn't Akira Akito's sister and her deceased daughter? A very bad feeling was gnawing at me and I turned to Honey and Mori. They seemed to be as lost as I was.

"Wasn't Akira Akito's sister, Kyoya?" Honey asked me, his eyes without even a speck of the childishness he usually expressed.

I nodded my head quietly, my brains working full speed.

"Waah, he kicked me..." Meanwhile, Kaoru cried artificially on the shoulder of his brother and I glanced at them, knitting my brows in thought.

Apparently, Akito didn't want Kaoru to mention Akira in front of his mother for that was the moment he created all the ruckus. Huh?.. I recalled how Akito was asking something of me but he couldn't finish 'Don't mention...' Hmmmm... Akito's mother didn't even remember that name, but Akito had a twin sister by the name Akira. Sill, his mother said she always wanted to have twins so that Akito didn't grow up alone. But she HAD twins... Something was amiss here. What is it that I'm not seeing?.. I frowned slightly, thinking hard and going all over the facts until suddenly it dawned on me.

"Ah!" I gasped.

"Huh? What is it, Kyoya?" Honey looked up at me wonderingly and I shook my head.

It's impossible. No, but if I think about it that way, everything falls into its place. I shook my head again.

"Honey, I'm going out for a bit. I'll be back soon. Don't go anywhere, any of you."

Honey nodded and so I left towards the Garden, still feeling rather confused over the conclusion I had drawn. Yet, I knew I couldn't be wrong about this one, for it was the only logical explanation I could come up.

It took me only a few minutes to reach the Garden and then a few more to find Akito and his mother. The boy didn't notice me come and I halted, watching his profile. Somehow, he looked so hurt and so fragile.

"Oh, Akito, you know, I always wanted to have twins," his mother Sakura smiled enthusiastically and leaned towards a bush of roses, smelling their scent. "It would have been so wonderful, I'm sure I could tell them apart!"

"You did," Akito whispered in reply and I felt my heart quench as if something stung it.

"Huh?" The woman turned around to look at her son wonderingly.

Akito merely smiled at her gently, "Nothing, I just said it would have been fun to have a twin sibling."

"Yes, indeed," she smiled happily and turned to the roses again.

I glanced at Akito, my eyes narrowing on his facial expression. For once, he was not wearing his mask, his eyes betraying his sadness and his hurt. I could feel his pain almost physically. And I didn't know why, but I had a sudden urge to hug him, to simply take away all his pain and suffering... Instead, I came up to him, calling him quietly, "Akito."

He turned to me, smiling at me sadly. I kept quiet. I wasn't sure of what to say. I was not sure if there were any words to comfort him. I simply knew I needed to come.

Akito turned away to look at his mother, "It's been 8 years like this. She just... refuses to remember."

I looked at his painful expression. What could I say to him? What could I do for him?

Nothing.

I clenched my fists in anger of my uselessness. For the first time in my life I felt something slipping from my hands and I felt so helpless.

Akito turned to face me again, another smile tugging at the corners of his lips, "I... I think I'll go home for now. She'll want to continue with preparations for my birthday party, I'm sure. Please, don't...

"I understand," I interrupted him, wondering how he could still smile. It must have been hell for him. "I'll make sure your sister is not mentioned in the presence of your mother."

I stared at his hurt eyes as he nodded his head in gratitude, "Thank you."

He took a few steps towards his mother, "I'll say goodbye to her and later I'll take her back to the Host Club. Please, go back first."

"Yes," I replied quietly and watched him go to his mother.

I watched him smile at her and laugh lightly at something she said. As if nothing happened... I always thought my family was quite messed up… or Tamaki's… But his pain, his life... I can't imagine how he's been holding up till now. I really can't. Or is it, that time heals everything? Do you get used to things like this?

I have heard of people with partial amnesia before, but I had never met one. The death of her daughter must have shocked lady Sakura so much that she locked up all the memories inside her head. And Akito... He was only eight at that time. How much pain and suffering did this cause to him? Not only to lose your other half, but being unable to even mention her? I could not imagine this kind of pain. And for a moment, I tried to put myself into his shoes. If I had a twin sister and she died… and I couldn't even grieve for her… I closed my eyes and turned away, heading back to the Host Club, mixed feelings bubbling in my heart.


	13. Chapter 13

**Thanks' for all the comments and the ideas for the gifts ^^ I'm gonna include them in the next chapters about the birthday party, so I'm sure you'll all recognize your suggestions XD Anyhow, enjoy this short update and the next one is gonna be the partyyy!!! . I'll try doing more and more of Kyoya POV, so he might seem a bit off character now, but hey, that's what love does to you! Muahahahaha!**

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I sat in my seat, feeling somewhat anxious. I was waiting for Akito to come. I wanted to see if he was alright after all that happened yesterday. He looked like he was about to burst into tears and I felt regretful I could do nothing more for him or his mother. I even tried getting more information about Sakura's amnesia and her health condition, but all of the data was protected well. It seems like the Heishi family prefers secret hidden from the outsiders, even from me.

Also, yesterday I told the Host Club about Akito's mother and we all agreed not to bring up this topic anymore. We felt as if we would be rubbing salt on a wound if we did. Now everyone wanted to make him the best birthday party ever, myself included. I could not even understand why, but I really wanted to protect him, to show him he could open up to us, to me. And yet, I felt so helpless at the same time. Everything I did and strived for seemed so trivial now. I did not understand myself anymore...

And then, I heard a happy "Good morning, Kyoya!" and raised my head to see Akito. I felt something warm flutter inside and my heart beat rapidly.

"Akito..." I blinked as I stared at him surprised. He was smiling, smiling at me happily. "That is, good morning."

God, where were my manners? Akito smiled at me widely and I noticed it felt different from before. It was not his usual artificial smile. It was a real one. Suddenly, I wished I could make him smile more, make him laugh and see how his eyes lit up with joy...

Confused, I stared at his back turned to me while he was talking to some girl. How weird. Why did I feel so warm when he smiled at me? I shook my head slightly. So strange, what is this that I'm feeling?..

* * *

Akira came to class that morning in an incredibly good mood. She felt lighter and even happier, perhaps, because she knew her mother was in good hands and for the first time in her life she had trusted someone else besides her brother Touya. It felt good. It felt… freeing. There was someone else now who shared at least one of the horrible secrets she hid and it felt relaxing.

Furthermore, despite all of her prejudices, she found it quite fun to be in the Host Club. She felt more carefree there and she could say whatever she wanted and whatever she felt. She didn't have to think what to say and how to smile, she didn't even have to try and keep smiling all the time for the smiles somehow seemed to come up to her face by themselves... She had almost forgotten what it meant to be with others.

Usually, back in her old school, she would just go home after her classes, but now she was spending time with others and that was very precious to her. Akira felt as if some of her natural and normal life had been returned to her. Sure, it wasn't the way she hoped it would be, but it was better than nothing. She finally felt like she could try and open up to someone.

When Akira entered the class, the girls were the first ones to greet her and once again she found it rather funny. She was quite popular, especially her so called Dark side Aki, which she had created for sheer fun. Well, now she was branded as the Split-personality type and it suited her well. She kind of liked having fun with the girls like that and it helped her to understand the other members of the Host club a bit more.

Anyhow, as soon as she got rid of the girls, she flashed a smile at Kyoya, taking her seat beside him, "Good morning, Kyoya!"

He raised his head and looked at her surprised as Akira kept smiling happily.

"Akito..." Kyoya made a weird pause and Akira even wondered if he was fine. "That is, good morning."

He looked so confused that she just found herself grinning. _'Well, isn't this a bit uncommon for Kyoya?'_

She sat down and talked to some girls, then concentrated on what the teacher was saying and even dreamt of ending the classes sooner. At times Akira noticed Kyoya watching her intently, his eyes drifting away as soon as she turned to him. She wondered what that could be all about, but decided to keep quiet. If Kyoya wanted something from her, he would simply ask. Furthermore, she felt somewhat enthusiastic about her upcoming birthday and it was a rather new feeling to her. Perhaps, this time everything would be slightly different. Usually, she hated that fated day, feeling as if it wasn't her birthday that was being celebrated, but rather her brother's. It was the loneliest day of the entire year even though she was surrounded by family and showered with gifts. She often felt suffocated by all the lies and the fact that the cake bore only one name on it. Not hers. The only one to actually know Akira's true feelings towards her so called happiest day was her brother Touya. He was also the only one to always say "Happy Birthday, Akira!" to her. That was the moment she anticipated the most throughout the day. Actually, even when talking to Akira normally, Touya had never called her by her brother's name. He would always shorten her name to Aki, which could be understood ambiguously as it was the beginning of both Akira's and her brother's name. Perhaps, that was why she was so close to Touya, perhaps, by his side she felt as if she was back to being herself, even if only by a tiny bit. Sadly, Touya could no longer protect her as he was staying abroad working. He was constantly in meetings or official dinners and though Akira called him at least once per week, Touya was always busy and the conversation never lasted long enough. He promised he'd be back with her in three months after the grand opening of his new resort hotel and Akira was awaiting that moment impatiently. Yet, three months was a very long time and she hoped he would at least come to her birthday. Touya had never missed her birthday.

* * *

*** A few days later ***

Kyoya's POV

Just what in the world is wrong with me?! For the past few days, ever since I found out about lady Sakura's condition, I've been acting like some kind of a stalker... Always watching Akito, following him around silently. I tried to tell myself I was collecting data, but the notebook in my hands remained empty. This was so not like me. Once again, I glanced at him, sitting beside me and smiling all to himself… He looked pretty when he was smiling… Oh, God, someone tell me I did NOT just think that…

"Is something on my face?" Akito asked, slightly frowning.

"What?" I shook my head slightly, trying to get rid of those stupid thoughts.

"You've been staring at me for some time," Akito chuckled and I pushed my glasses up, trying to hide my eyes from him.

"I just need to tell you something," I said, my mind trying to find anything I could actually say to him. Damn it. My brains seemed to be failing me whenever I was around Akito.

"What is it?"

"Ah… well, I wanted to let you know that you don't have to come to the Host Club from today onwards. We're closing it down in preparations for the party," I finally managed to find a rather logical thing to say.

"Closing down?" Akito stared at me in surprise. "It's still 3 days till my birthday!"

"We need time to prepare everything," I replied.

He suddenly laughed and I found the sound of his voice incredibly adorable.

"What in the world are you doing there? Building pyramids?"

I smirked, "Perhaps."

He gave me a curious look and then smirked back at me, "I hope you don't forget the mummies, then."

Akito turned away from me, keen to finish reorganizing his notebooks on the desk, but my eyes still lingered on his figure. I never noticed how long his eyelashes were and how cutely he wrinkled his nose when he frowned… how his eyes lit up when he laughed…

Oh my God. I need to stop. I turned away and bit my lip, then pushed up my glasses in one brisk movement. Thank God, Akito didn't notice me staring at him again or he might have thought some weird things. I mean... I readjusted my glasses again. I need to distance myself from him. Yes, that would be better.

I glanced at Akito once more and suddenly realized there was no way I could distance myself from him. Just look how fragile and frail he is… He needs someone to protect him and look after him… No, no, wait. Such thinking doesn't suit me. And what exactly am I thinking about?..

I knitted my brows in thought, wondering where my cold and calculating side had gone, but then my musings were interrupted by a ringtone and I turned my head, realizing it was Akito's phone. He took out the contraption and as soon as his eyes landed on its screen, a wide smile spread on his face. What's up with this kind of smile?.. I had never seen this expression on his face before.

Akito answered the phone and I couldn't help but listen in. Who could be calling? Akito never smiled like this, not even at me.

"Touya!" Meanwhile, he exclaimed happily and I pushed my glasses up.

Touya, huh. So, it was just his brother. Seems like I was worried for nothing. Wait, what was I worried about?

I glanced back at Akito and noticed his face sadden, his eyes losing that sparkle they had just a moment ago.

"Ah... I see," he kept silent for a moment, smiling sadly. "No, I'm fine, it's ok. Don't worry, Touya. Take care, alright? I understand."

Hm? Is something wrong? I watched Akito terminate the call. He held his cell in his hand for a minute, looking at it somewhat sadly.

"Is everything all right, Akito?" I asked, watching him closely from behind my glasses. I hated when he looked so depressed.

Akito turned to me surprised, then cast his glance down, "No, it's fine."

"I can see something is wrong," I replied. "So, why don't you tell me? Maybe I could help?"

I watched as Akito bit his lip slightly, thinking hard. For some reason, I held my breath. The truth was, I wanted him to tell, not for some merits and benefits I could gain, but simply because I wanted to know, because I cared. I wanted to help him and this was a first for me.

I wanted to win his trust.

Akito glanced up at me, his eyes boring into mine momentarily, as if trying to see if he could put his trust on me. Then, he cast his eyes away, "My brother."

I tensed up. Was he finally opening up to me?

"My brother Touya... he's always been with me on my birthdays," Akito looked back at me sadly. "But it seems he won't be able to make it this time."

Akito paused, then suddenly smiled at me and chuckled, "Sorry, I'm acting like a little brat. Forget it, ok?"

He flashed another smile at me and turned away. I did not say anything to him, wondering if there was something I could do for him. "Touya, huh?" I whispered to myself in thought. _'Is he that important to you, Akito?'_

* * *

*** Later that evening ***

Kyoya's POV

I stared at my computer screen blankly, the numbers flashing in my eyes. 8526-454-56-221. I clutched the phone in my hands, sighing. Really now, why was I so nervous? This is just another call, isn't it? But this time... I really cared about the outcome. I held my cell in my hands, thinking as to what I should actually tell him. Will it even work? He doesn't know me. There is no reason why he should listen to me. And… I'm not good at this.

I let out a sigh and finally dialed the number.


	14. Chapter 14

**Well, here's the birthday party and bit more of Kyoya, though he is OOC again. I think. . Oh, and here you finally meet Touya, so be prepared! ~.^**

* * *

A few days had passed already since the day Akira had let her worries slip and told Kyoya about her brother. She couldn't understand what was happening to her. She never thought she could ever tell someone how much she missed her brother. Something different was happening in her life and she felt as if her world had become just a tiny bit brighter since the day her twin brother died. Was this what it meant to have friends?

Anyhow, today was finally her birthday, hers and her brother's. It was almost strange how much she anticipated this party. After all, the Host Club was closed down for three days. Three days! There must be something grand waiting for her, especially, knowing the fact that it was a collaboration between Tamaki and her mother. Lady Sakura had always made things difficult for Akira. It was hard enough to pretend to be a boy, but to try and be a perfect son to her just drove her crazy. Sometimes, at the hardest moments, a despicable thought would cross Akira's mind and she'd wonder what her life could be like if her mother was no longer here… If she was dead. And later, Akira'd hate herself for even thinking so and would feel guilty for such thoughts. After all, what kind of a child wishes for his mother to be dead?..

She shook her head, determined to have fun today and flashed her usual smile. For some reason, Akira almost expected a flood of fan girls attacking her from early morning, but, to her surprise there was no one. Not even one person pestered her and even the girls acted pretty normal. Of course, in the morning she found an invitation on her desk. It said to come to the Host Club at 4pm. But that was the only thing that reminded her of her birthday. Not even Akira's mother congratulated her though usually she was the first one to hug her in the morning. Well, Akira decided it was quite a nice change for once and somehow she knew something grandiose was going to happen at 4pm. Why else would they have to close the Host Club for 3 days?

She tried guessing what they could have thought up, but Kyoya was merely smirking mysteriously and Akira couldn't think of anything. _'I sure would like to know what's awaiting me... Oh well, I guess I'll just have to go into the darkness...'_ She thought as she checked her mobile phone, but there were no messages. Queer. She hoped Touya would at least call or leave a message. This was going to be her first birthday without Touya and it felt weird. Then, she frowned slightly. Come to think of it, Touya probably didn't know she had to act as a boy again. Akira still had not told him about her mother and father moving in and her attending the school as a guy. She sighed. He'll be furious when he finds out. Sometimes she thought that Touya wanted her to come back to being a girl even more than her. He was always on his little sister's side, no matter what happened.

* * *

Akira halted by the front door of the third music room, biting on her lip nervously. She was having jitters just thinking of what was behind that door. At the same time, she hoped this year would be different and it made her anticipate for it even more. It was finally 4pm and she felt her heart beat faster as she gripped the handle.

With a tender push she opened the door and peered inside. It was dark and silent and even the dim lights in the corridor did not illuminate the path ahead.

'_Weird. Usually there are petals flying straight into my face,'_ she thought as she took a step forward into the darkness. She felt as if she was blind and most surely her foot hit something hard and Akira almost fell flat on her face. Almost. A strong arm caught her around her waist before the girl fell and held her up. Akira glanced up and in the black darkness managed to notice the glint of glasses. Kyoya.

"Welcome, Akito!" He greeted and at that moment a slightly bluish light lit up slowly behind his back, illuminating the Host Club room.

Akira nodded and smiled at him, her eyes drifting towards the room, curious as to how they decorated the premises. The light was still not on completely and the room was drowning in dimness, pillars of bright blue shining at its corners and center, illuminating the place only slightly. Akira squinted her eyes as she noticed some kind of movement and she knitted her brows in thought, _'Wha... a fish?'_

She blinked and looked again, but nothing was moving anymore and the room was still relatively dark. The girl glanced down beneath her feet and cocked her brow in surprise_, 'STAIRS?! There were no stairs the last time I was here...'_

"Careful now," Kyoya said, his hand taking yours gently. "There are stairs here, so don't trip."

Akira glanced up at him, but could not make out his expression due to the lack of light.

"Why is it so dark?" She asked and Kyoya shrugged.

"You'll see."

Akira nodded her head, having decided to simply enjoy whatever they had prepared for her and ascended the little stairs, as Kyoya led her. There were only about 6 steps and as she went up, the lights grew brighter slowly and the room got illuminated with various shades of blue as she made her way across it. As soon as the lights went on, Akira gasped at the view, finally understanding why the Host Club needed 3 days for this... She could hardly imagine how this could be done...

As she made her way forth and the lights went on fully, she found herself in a world of water – the walls and even the floor underneath her feet were turned into one huge aquarium... behind the glass all kinds of fishes were floating around, their bright colours shining and glittering under the illumination. Water plants and corals seemed to grow from the sand and Akira noticed not one element of the underwater life was forgotten.

"Amazing..." She whispered, looking around in pleasant astonishment.

She had to admit, this time the Host Club had done its homework. Fishes and underwater life was something that fascinated her dead brother. When Akito was still alive, he was simply obsessed with fishes of all kinds and though at first Akira was not so interested in it, soon she got quite immersed into sea life as well. She only took it up as a hobby because it was something her brother Akito loved. Yet, later on she had to admit she enjoyed the calmness and the soothing effect that aquariums and fishes had on her, even though she did not swoon over every small fish she got her hands on.

Finally, as Akira managed to get her surprise under control, she noticed there were people standing around and when she averted her gaze to them, they all smiled at her and shouted out in unison, "Happy Birthday, Akito!"

Akira grinned happily and glanced up at Kyoya, who was smiling too.

"Do you like it?" He asked wonderingly.

Akira turned to him smiling, "Yes! This is simply... I can't find the words to say... How? How did you all this?"

"Well, we find out you liked sea life. Everything else was simple," he pushed his glasses up and Akira laughed.

"Simple? Everything but that! Must have cost you billions!.."

"If it would make you smile, I'd..." Kyoya whispered quietly, but he was interrupted by Akira's mother.

"Oh, happy birthday, my dear Akito!"

Akira hugged her mother and kissed her cheek.

"I'm so sorry your father couldn't make it," Sakura glanced at you sadly.

"I know. It's alright. He's already congratulated me," Akira calmed her mother down and hugged her again. There was no need for her to know that daddy dearest hardly even spoke to her these days.

Lady Sakura seemed happy right now and that's what mattered the most to Akira. And the next few hours were amazingly fun to her. She got an ocean of gifts, so to say and while some of them made her laugh, others almost brought tears to her eyes as she never thought someone could have guessed what she wanted as a gift. The girls that visited her most often in the Host Club cooperated together and gave her a brand new MP3 player, the latest model too. She also got DVDs and music CDs, cute key rings, little trinkets and accessories for her phone, all from the girls. The pile of presents just kept growing bigger and bigger by the minute and she had yet to receive the gifts from the Host Club.

Somehow, Akira was most curious as to what they would gift her and when finally Tamaki got out his little box after a half an hour of blabbing, her heart beat just a bit faster in anticipation. It was a collection of rare piano notes and music sheets and her chest grew warmer towards the blond idiot as she smiled at him joyfully. So, he did not forget she loved the piano.

Next was Mori and Honey and the two almost made her tear up as the huge box with a bright blue ribbon contained a mountain of her favorite chocolate candies and a gigantic teddy bear. She had to blink a few times and pinch herself until she finally believed her eyes. The toy was almost bigger than her and she even wondered how in the world she's gonna get it home. She noticed her mother frown in confusion at such a choice of a gift but it did not matter much to Akira. After all… she got a stuffed TEDDY BEAR!!!!

She thought she was gonna crush Honey to death in her glee and it was a good thing Mori came to the rescue. Then, it was the twins' turn and with a mischievous glint in their eyes they gave her a little box, which she took with slight suspicion. You never know it with Kaoru and Hikaru. And yep, she was right. As soon as opened the lid, a head of a clown jumped out and Akira almost screamed at the suddenness. Good thing she didn't. Yet, there was something in the mouth of the clown and as Akira took it out and unfolded it, she found a coupon for ear piercing and tattoos.

"Wow, how did you know I wanted my ears pierced?" She glanced at the twins and the two grinned in return, winking at her.

Next was Haruhi and she gave quite a surprising gift, which made Akira wonder if perhaps Haruhi knew more than she let on… It was a journal with a pen, but it was white in color, adorned in red and looked much like a diary.

"You can write whatever you wish here," Haruhi said as Akira glanced at her questioningly. "It's good for pouring out one's feelings when the going gets tough."

Somehow, Akira felt this was one of the things she was going to use in the near future. She hugged Haruhi affectionately and put the journal beside the piano sheets, thinking that perhaps a diary was not such a bad idea, after all. Why didn't she think of it herself?..

* * *

Kyoya's POV

He was happy, I could see he was really happy. I've rarely seen Akito smile like this and his joy brought a smile to my face as well. So, the party was a success, after all.

"Oh, I have never seen him laugh so freely before," lady Sakura noted and I turned to her curiously.

"I feel that sometimes he's holding back," she glanced up at me. "But it seems today he crossed all his barriers. I'm so happy for him."

I nodded, smiling politely as I watched the girls slowly leave. All according to my plan. The second part of the party was only for the Host Club and family members.

Meanwhile, Akito walked up to me, smiling happily Seems like he had fun today.

"So, tell me, how did you come up with this... fishy idea?" He wiggled his brows suggestively and I glanced at him surprised. He's smart, how come he didn't get it yet?

"Oh, but that's because fishes are your favorite animals, Akito! I know you simply love them! You've been obsessed with sea life since the moment you first saw it!" His mother smiled and clapped her hands together.

I noticed Akito look slightly baffled for a second, but then he masked it with a smile. Again, that fake smile.

"Yes, indeed," he said. "I guess I am a little obsessed with it."

He laughed and hugged his mother. I smiled at their closeness and reached out for my own present for Akito. He glanced at my hands curiously as the present was round in shape. I handled it to him carefully, "A small present from me to add to your collection."

Akito arched his brow in slight wonder as he weighed it in his arms, "Wow, that's heavy."

I smirked, awaiting his reaction as he put it on a nearby table and unwrapped it. Under the golden wrapping paper there was a round aquarium with a single fish. It was all white, without even a fleck of another colour. I pushed my glasses up content with the surprise on Akito's face. This was quite a rare fish and every fish collector was eager to have one in his own aquarium. I felt glad I was able to acquire it from one of my acquaintances, who owed me a favour.

"Wow, it's all white!" Sakura noticed, leaning closer. "What a strange fish, what is it called, Akito?"

To my surprise, Akito remained silent and then whispered, knitting his brows together, "I have no idea. Never seen a white fish before."

I arched my brow in surprise. He didn't know the platinum Arowana? One of the rarest and most expensive fishes in the world? Akito glanced up at me confused and I stated, "It's the platinum Arowana."

"The platinum… Arowana? Oh my, isn't it the one you've been dreaming of since you were six?" Lady Sakura clapped her hands in joy, admiring the fish.

Akito, on the other hand, seemed flustered and embarrassed. His cheeks flushed in red and he avoided my eyes, muttering, "Yeah, yeah, I did."

I stared at him in wonder. His mother said he's been crazy about fishes since early childhood and had always wanted to have "a pure platinum fish". It took me almost an entire day to figure out lady Sakura meant the platinum Arowana. And yet, Akito himself did not seem so overjoyed. I doubt he even knew the fish. How queer. Was his mother exaggerating? Or, perhaps, his love for the sea world has faded already?

"Thanks, Kyoya," he finally lifted up his head and another smile was plastered on his lips. Yet, I could see something was worrying him. I wonder what.

"You don't look very happy," I commented and another flush of red coloured his cheeks.

"It just… sounds… expensive," he glanced at the fish and then back at me, almost nervously. "You shouldn't have gotten something so high-priced, Kyoya."

I readjusted my glasses on my nose, wondering out aloud, "The price doesn't matter. I merely thought it would be a nice addition to your fish collection."

He looked at me flustered once again, "I-It will. Of course. Thanks', Kyoya."

I stared at him thoughtfully, wondering why in the world it seemed like he was way happier to receive that enormous teddy bear, which, by the way, he had already named as Mr. Pooh. Very creative, I must say. Really.

Meanwhile, lady Sakura smiled at us as she stepped around, facing Akito, "Well, it's high time I gave you my present as well."

I glanced at her, wondering what it was that she prepared for him. I did not notice her bring any gifts and I figured she wanted to congratulate Akito later at home. I suppose I was wrong and I watched her took out a white envelope, adorned in pink roses. She handed it to Akito and kissed him on the cheek.

He took the envelope slightly baffled and opened it up. In a moment, he took out two slips of paper, which looked like some kind of tickets.

"Happy Birthday, dear. Now, these tickets are for two and I want you to take someone with you," Sakura explained happily. "A girl, of course, after all, it's a romantic trip for two to a secluded tropical island!"

I averted my gaze from the tickets to Akito's mother shocked. A romantic trip to an island?! What kind of present is that? Then, I glanced back at Akito and noticed he was shivering slightly, as his fingers pressed the tickets tightly.

"It's high time you found yourself a girlfriend," his mother noted with a gentle smile. "I think one of these pretty girls will surely be happy to come with you..."

I watched Akito with peaked interest as he looked like he could barely contain himself. I take it his mother's present was even worse than mine. Who would have thought?.. Meanwhile, Akito thanked his mother and put the tickets inside his pocket. I knitted my brows in thought. I can understand this was quite a shock to him, still, why is he so flustered over a few tickets?

Lady Sakura smiled happily and then left us alone, heading Tamaki's way as she seemed to have taken quite a liking to our king lately. As soon as she was gone far enough, Akito let out a heavy sigh, looking down sadly.

"A girlfriend?.." He whispered, his voice slightly cracking. "God must really hate me..."

I frowned. I really hated seeing this expression on his face, "Akito?.."

I reached out to him, wondering if I could lift his spirits up again, but then I got interrupted by a deep masculine voice, "How come every time I come for a visit, I find you frowning, huh?"

I turned to my left to see a good looking guy in a white suit. He was smirking at us and I realized this was Akito's older brother Touya or so I believed after flicking through a few photos of him in the Internet. The young man was holding quite a large box under his arm, wrapped in a white paper and tied with a red ribbon.

Surprised, I noticed Akito gasp and run towards the guy, hugging him tightly and practically hanging up on him. I frowned when he hugged Akito back, pressing him to his chest hard. I figured this was Akito's brother, but even so... why are they so touchy- feely? They're just brothers, for goodness sake.

I made my way to then, pushing my glasses up slightly, "Touya Heishi, I assume?"

He glanced at me, frowning slightly, and his eyes traveled up and down as if he was evaluating me. Well, this was a first to me. Usually, I was the one doing all the evaluation stuff.

"Indeed, nice to finally meet you, Kyoya Ohtori," he said and we shook hands.

His grip was strong and firm. During our introduction, Akito remained holding onto his brother's arm and I felt a slight sting in my chest as I took in their linked arms. I didn't like him being so close to someone else. I couldn't quite understand it well myself, but I felt somewhat angry. Really, if Akito wasn't a boy ad they were not brothers, I would call this jealousy...

"Hmm," meanwhile, Touya mused and his hand ruffled Akito's hair affectionately. "You know, this uniform doesn't suit you at all! Wherever did you get it? Cosplay Club?"

They both laughed at the pun that I did not seem to get… What's wrong with his uniform? A normal boy's uniform of Ouran School and, actually, I had to admit it fit Akito quite well.

"I wonder what you told your mother about it," Touya chuckled again and I scoffed.

The man asks some incredibly weird questions. Furthermore, he should stop hugging Akito already. What are they? A lovey-dovey pair? I froze for a moment. Ok, that was weird... what kind of a thought was that?..

"Alright, I'm gonna go say hi to our mother, but I'll be back soon," Touya winked and Akito nodded. "Here, this is your present. Just don't open it up in presence of mother or she'll flip."

He leaned towards Akito and kissed him in a cheek, whispering something I could not hear. I frowned at him kissing Akito. Since when do brothers kiss each other? But I was even more shocked to see a gentle, calm, but definitely a very joyful expression on Akito's face. Just what in the world did Touya say to him?

As Touya went away, Akito took the greeting card from the ribbon and opened it up. He smiled happily reading it and I started wondering what was written on it. He then looked back at his mother, who was now greeting Touya and then turned to glance at the box he was holding.

I saw curiosity on his face when he undid the ribbon and peeked inside carefully. Then, there was sudden surprise and joy… He smiled widely and laughed a little, "Touya..."

I got curious as well. What could be in that box?

Akito glanced at me smiling, "Kyoya? Can I put this in the back room for a while?"

I nodded, "Of course."

He thanked me and left towards the backroom. I frowned slightly. I wanted to follow him, but I knew he didn't want my company right now, so I stayed back. Once again, in my usual habit, I pushed my glasses up. At that time I noticed Touya coming back, but... He looked rather... angry? He stormed up to me furiously, "Where's Aki?"

I lowered my head, hiding my eyes behind my glasses, watching him carefully. Really, this family never ceased to amaze me.

"Your brother went to the backroom to put the present away."

"My brother?" Touya chuckled, glowering at me angrily. His gaze pierced right through me and he hissed venomously, "I thought you were Aki's friend, when you called and asked me to come to the birthday party. Now I see you're as dumb as everyone else here!"

I stared at him in shock. Did he just call me dumb?

"Where's the backroom?"

I motioned with my arm and he left right away, still fuming. What in the world has happened? I was just about to follow him, when I noticed a piece of paper on the ground.

Ah, the greeting card from Touya. I lifted it up and opened it, 'Happy Birthday, Akira!'

Huh? That's it? A simple 'Happy birthday' made him smile like that?.. I shook my head, closing the card, when suddenly I realized something. I opened it again and read once more, 'Happy birthday, Akira!'

The name… My eyes widened and I turned my head towards the backroom. Akira?! What the...


	15. Chapter 15

**Hey, guys! Sorry I've been gone for so long, but I shall admit I've been overly busy with writing my original story. I had so much inspiration for it that I just had to write everything down. . Well, this is a short update for Kyoya, who will have some revelations this chapter. I'll try to update again in a few days. ^^ Enjoy!**

* * *

Akira slipped into the backroom, clutching the box with the gift in her arms. Her heart was beating fast and she could hardly believe her own eyes. She wanted to open the box again and look once more to make sure she did not dream of it. The girl closed the doors shut, walked to a table and put the box down on it.

First, she took a deep breath and then opened it up. There, a beautiful green material lay, glistening in the light of the room. Akira reached out her shivering hand and touched it gently... it was a dress, a real dress. It was a dark green colour and from what she saw it was about knee length. It had tulle around the waist that went down to the skirt part of the dress and a matching dark green shawl.

Akira raised the dress from the box, breathing in the smell of the material, touching it softly. It was a dress, something she'd only seen in her dreams. Indeed, her brother Touya knew her best! The girl got the dress out of the box and pressed it to her body, looking down at it amazed. It was simply wonderful!.. Then, suddenly, she heard footsteps and she put the dress back into the box quickly. She would have a hard time explaining this to others.

Meanwhile, the doors creaked and Akira put the lid on the box hurriedly. She turned around and surprised she saw Touya. The girl sighed in relief, but then she got worried again as she noticed her brother's expression - half angry, half sad, hurt even.

"Is it true?" Touya asked quietly, in a bare whisper.

"Wha... What?" For a moment, Akira could not understand what he meant.

"IS IT TRUE?!" he yelled at her, stepping closer and Akira flinched. Touya had never raised his voice at her.

But now, the ever gentle brother looked furious and she knew what had happened. He found out about mother.

"Is it true that you... you're pretending to be Akito again?" He asked angrily, his voice strained, almost as if he could barely contain himself. Akira could only nod.

"WHY?! Why the hell are you still doing this?" She shuddered at his spiteful voice and felt tears gathering in her eyes. She blinked a few times, trying to stop them from falling.

"Didn't father let you go free?" Touya raged on, furious about what he found out, furious that he felt so helpless once again.

"Lies..." Akira whispered. Touya looked at her surprised as she yelled back at him. "It's all LIES!!! Father never even thought of letting me go! Do you think I'm enjoying this?!"

She started crying, the hurt and anger too much for her to bear, "I don't even know who I am anymore! Akira or Akito? What does it matter now, anyways?.."

"What are you saying?" Her brother grabbed her shoulders firmly in fear of what she was gonna say next.

"I'm saying... I'm saying that..." Akira stopped and let out a muffled chuckle. "You know, Touya... no one misses me, actually. I think... no, really, if it was me who died back then, everyone would be so much happier. There would be no problems, you see, and mother would be happy too... so you see, I should have died, not Akito... I should have..."

She felt pain as Touya gripped her arms just below her shoulders and shook her violently, "Stop talking nonsense! You are YOU! Don't ever regret that you survived, Akira! EVER! I need you and I love you just the way you are! So, don't ever say that again…"

She glanced up at Touya, tears running down uncontrollably now, as she whispered through her sobs, "But I... I... Touya, I don't know anymore... I just don't know myself... what kind of a person am I? What do I like? What do I hate? I don't remember... I can't remember myself anymore!"

Touya let out a sigh and pulled her closer to him, hugging her gently. He couldn't bear watching his little sister suffer like this anymore. She hugged him back, wetting his expensive shirt with her tears.

He patted the girl's head gently, "This should have never happened... I should have put a stop to all this farce 8 years ago. Yet... I was weak and stupid."

Touya kept stroking her hair soothingly, "Not even God can forgive me for what I've done."

Akira shook her head, whispering, "It's not your fault, Touya. Please, don't blame yourself. I did it because I wanted to. It's my own fault, no one else's."

Touya smiled sadly and leaned forth, planting a kiss on her forehead, "I promise to you, I'll make this right. I'll talk to father and..."

"Touya..."

"NO. Don't say anything. It's high time I ended this and I will. I promise you, I'll fix everything."

* * *

  
Kyoya's POV

I was heading towards the backroom, pressing the greeting card in my hand with such force that it crumpled. What does all this mean?.. My head was spinning with the last pieces of the puzzle, but I just could not accept it. It was… simply unthinkable. I must be wrong. There is no way Akito would be… No, Akito? Or was it Akira? Who was he? Was he even a… _**he**_? I shook my head fervently and halted in my steps to gather myself.

Alright. Let's think everything over. Slowly, bit by bit. Everything I knew. I replayed my memories of Akito in my head a few times, looking for all the clues I missed. His poker face. His fake smiles. His resentment towards anything manly. His little outbursts seemingly over nothing. His despise of his own name… Oh yes, I have long had suspicions he did not like being called by his name. His? Hers? His mother. Ah, his mother. His long dead sister. Was she really dead? When did she die? Was it really eight years ago?

I continued on my way to the backroom, my mind in a mess. The only thing I knew for sure was that I've been so wrong about Akito. I never really knew him. No, wait. Make it her. I never knew her. The only thing I was sure of now was that Akito was a she. More like, it wasn't even Akito. It was Akira. But when did the change happen?.. What exactly happened eight yeas ago at that accident?..

Yet, the only explanation I could come up with was that it was Akira. But it was so fantastic, so unbelievable! How could one pretend to be someone else for all her life? What about her family?.. What did they think of it?

By that time, I finally reached the backroom doors and noticed it was opened a bit. I pushed it more and peered inside. Surprised, I saw the two brothers (or was it a brother and a sister?) hugging each other.

"This should have never happened... I should have put a stop to all this farce 8 years ago. Yet... I was weak and stupid," Touya said, stroking Akito's hair gently. Akira's hair.

I clenched my hands into fists, feeling as if something was burning inside me.

"Not even God can forgive me for what I've done," he continued, but his last words still rang in my ears. Eight years… a farce of eight years. It can't be… For eight years?!

Meanwhile, Akito, no, Akira, shook her head, whispering something. I could not hear it, but I figured she was comforting Touya, or saying it wasn't his fault. Touya then smiled somewhat sadly, gently stroking Akira's head. I gritted my teeth. It was his fault.

Everything was falling to its places slowly and I felt anger scorch my heart and mind. What was he doing all these eight years?! How could he let his own sister pose as a guy, as her dead brother for eight years?! For God's sake, that's half of her life!..

"I promise to you, I'll make this right. I'll talk to father and..."

"Touya..."

"NO. Don't say anything. It's high time I ended this and I will. I promise you, I'll fix everything," Touya sounded determined and I wondered if he had finally come to his senses.

Then, he pressed Akira closer to him, hugging her strongly, but gently as well. I felt pain sting in my chest again. I could not quite understand it, but I wanted to be the one to hug Akira and to comfort her, to tell her that I knew, that I wanted to accept her as she was.

This strange sensation that I had only heard about struck me as if lightning. Love? A feeling so alien to me I didn't even recognize it. I stared at the two siblings, my heart aching for one of them. Yet, somehow, I felt this was not the time. Not now. I quietly closed the doors, my chest hurting, my lungs finding it hard to breathe.

"What are you doing here, Kyoya?"

My mind went blank for a moment, but as soon as I heard Honey's voice, I turned around with an ordinary smile on my face, "Is something the matter, Honey, Mori?"

Honey's smile disappeared instantly as if he had sensed something odd in my behaviour, "Are you alright, Kyoya?"

Akito, uh, Akira, was completely right. Honey might be the sharpest person around here. I nodded and smiled, pushing thoughts of Akira further away.

"Of course, why do you ask?"

"Hmmm..." It looked like Honey didn't want to give up yet, but Mori interrupted and I was thankful to him for that.

"We were looking for Akito," Mori said calmly. "Have you seen him around?"

I frowned slightly. This wasn't a good time.

"Yes," I replied nonchalantly. "He's in the backroom with his brother, but I believe they need some time alone. It's best we do not hinder them now."

"Hn," Mori nodded, but Honey continued watching me with his piercing eyes as if he was trying to see through my façade and I started feeling uncomfortably. Luckily, Mori came to help me again. Really, I owed him now.

"I think I saw some cake left," Mori noted, looking away.

"Cake?" Honey's eyes glistened as little flowers appeared around him. "Cake!!!"

And with that he ran away, Mori tailing behind him. I sighed. I needed to calm down and concentrate. I glanced at the closed doors of the backroom. Will I ever be able to open them? Do I even have the right to? Somehow, I felt as if there was no place for me in Akira's world. Akira's… I pushed my glasses up, adjusting them over my nose.

I do not have the right to pry into their lives. Akira's life. There is nothing I can do for her.


	16. Chapter 16

**Hope you're ready for the climax of the story, cause it's finally coming... Be prepared. ^^**

* * *

The next morning Akira walked into the school grounds a bit moody. After crying in front of her brother and saying what was on her mind, she felt a bit lighter, but at the same time, she was scared and angry. She felt tired, just so tired...

She looked around sadly at the girls screaming after seeing her, the hearts floating around. These people were so distant to her. None of them even knew the real her. To hell with it, Akira herself didn't even know what kind of a person she was.

With a low grunt she recalled how she came back home yesterday. Her mother had tried to persuade her to go out with some random girl she met at the birthday party all the way home. And her brother Touya looked as if he was about to explode any second, but there was no stopping lady Sakura, when she had gotten some kind of an idea. And so the two siblings endured it as best as they could until they got home. Touya was supposed to fly back to Great Britain the morning after, but he told Akira he'd stay to have a talk with father, who was supposed to be back today in the noon.

Akira dreaded that conversation more than anything. She was scared it would only make everything worse. Her father refused to see anything else beyond the happiness of his wife. He loved her to the point of not caring about anything around him. This made Akira' heart ache and yet, at the same time it sickened her and rage overtook the place of compassion in her heart.

Why was it that her life had taken such a turn? Akira did not know. She just knew one thing – not once in her life since that fateful day eight years ago had she done something for herself. When she was still a child, it was the piano and the guitar lessons, the dance courses, the etiquette classes, then the martial arts and all kinds of subjects one could only imagine, and now this - a girlfriend! Hey, why not a marriage then? After all, everything that she'd ever learnt or did was because her mother had wanted it, and if she wanted her prefect son Akito to marry, Akira was pretty much sure her father would find some way to realize it.

Nothing she ever did was of her own free will and at times she felt as if she was living in a huge cage. She hated it. She couldn't stand it. Somewhere, deep in her, something just snapped and refused to be fixed. Akira felt angry and sad at the same time to such a point, that she had no idea what she was truly feeling. She just knew she couldn't continue like this. The girl was gradually loosing it.

* * *

The day passed by quietly. Akira was mad at everyone around, at the world that surrounded her and even at herself. She simply drowned in her own thoughts, self-pity and anger, not even caring anymore about what was going on around her. Tamaki and Kyoya tried talking to her numerous times, but she kept silent, ignoring them completely, or glaring at them death glances. It worked with Tamaki at the very least. She wanted to disappear, she wanted it all to be over, but she just knew that was never to happen. Nothing was as easy as that.

The lessons had already ended and she started gathering her things slowly, when Tamaki approached her again, "Akito!"

Akira gritted her teeth. She hated that name. Something was burning inside her. She wanted to shout and scream, she wanted to break something, to shatter it to pieces, but as always, the girl just kept her cool, hiding everything behind the empty stare of her now cold and blank eyes.

"Maybe you should go home for today, if you're not feeling well," Tamaki suggested, smiling at her.

Go home? To where her mother awaited with pictures and background checkups of the perfect brides for her? To where her father and brother were most probably exchanging blows right about now?..

She shook her head, not looking up, "Anywhere but there."

Tamaki looked at her confused and opened his mouth to say something, but then he stopped, as if doubting what to do. Kyoya came up from behind him, smiling his usual smile, though his eyes seemed to be different… Tender?

"Well, we all are just worried about you," he said.

"Is that so?.." Akira's eyes were still empty and emotionless even though inside she burnt with hurt.

'_Worried? Them?.. About ME?.. Don't make me laugh, you know nothing about me._'

Still, weirdly enough, Kyoya seemed to notice her inner feelings, "You may not believe us if you don't want to, but that's the truth."

She noticed Tamaki nod his head enthusiastically, though his eyes carried certain sadness in them.

"Even if you go to the club now, it won't do any good to anyone. Look around, you're making everyone worry about you," Kyouya continued and Akira glanced around, noticing the girls peering at her worriedly.

'_They are... worried?_' Akira wondered surprised. She had not noticed it for she was willowing in her self-pity for too long.

"Everyone is worried about you, not only us two. We're all your friends," Kyoya smiled at her and to her surprise, it seemed genuine. He was slowly breaking through her barrier and Akira stared at him surprised.

'_Friends? I've never had real friends... And he's saying they are worried... about ME?.. Me?_' Akira glanced up at Kyouya hopefully. She didn't know what she wanted to hear, but she felt as if waiting for something to happen. Time seemed to stop and there was no one around, just her and Kyoya. Only now did she notice how handsome he was... Strong willed, always so smart, standing his ground. And his eyes were staring down at her almost tenderly, gently, the way only Touya had looked at her until now. Also, there was something else in them. Something else, hidden behind those glasses.

Akira blinked and raised her head to look at the boy in front of her, waiting. He was so close to her and she had to tilt her head up so she could look into his eyes. He wasn't smiling anymore; instead, he looked serious, contemplative. She'd never seen him so serious before.

"I can see something's wrong with you. I don't know what it is, but isn't it time to stop acting?" Kyoya whispered. "Trust me, I ..." He paused for a second and Akira could feel her heart beat loudly. She could hardly breathe. "I really care about you, Akito."

She flinched at his words, her eyes widening in surprise. This wasn't what she wanted to hear... this wasn't the name she wanted him to call her by.

* * *

Kyoya's POV

Akito, or as I found out, Akira had been acting weirdly today. I could see something was terribly wrong, but I had no idea what. We just celebrated her birthday yesterday and she seemed to be happy, really happy. At least, until the second part of it, when she had that argument with her brother. But I knew she wasn't faking her joy earlier. I still found it unbelievable that Akito was indeed Akira. That it was a lonely and frail girl, posing as her dead brother for years. I spent the whole night thinking about it, trying to find a way to help her. I could not. I was not even sure if I had the right to…

I glanced at Akira again, who was staring blankly in front of her. Her hands were crumpling the page of her notebook and I pushed my glasses in my usual motion. She made me worry about her and I felt funny inside. Something was aching, making me dizzy with the need to suddenly embrace her, calm her down, tell her everything will be fine.

Yet, I held it back. That would only spook her. I couldn't just tell her I knew her secret. The secret she'd been hiding all these years. And I am not good with compassion and all those emotional things. It was hard for me to even think of her as Akira, not Akito that I've known for almost a few months know.

So, I tried to confront her in my usual manner, one that would not raise suspicion, but it all failed. She just ignored both me and Tamaki. I was getting really worried now. What could have happened to her to make her so moody? Something back at home? Did it have something to do with her brother?

Despite all that, I didn't want Akira to suffer like this. Tamaki was the first to approach her after classes, "Akito!"

I noticed some emotion pass in Akira's eyes but I couldn't manage to figure it out as it hid behind an empty stare. These cold empty eyes scared me. I could not read them, even worse, I could not understand what she was feeling.

"Maybe you should go home for today, if you're not feeling well," Tamaki suggested and I almost sensed a storm coming.

She shook her head, grumbling darkly, "Anywhere but there."

So, something did happen in the Heishi household. Meanwhile, Tamaki looked confused as he opened his mouth to say something and then stopped. I came up from behind him and smiled at Akira. This was my chance to talk to her and maybe to get her to trust me, "Well, we all are just worried about you."

"Is that so?.." She stared emptily and emotionlessly, but I could feel there was something more behind it. Damn, why is she so good at hiding her true self? I could not know what was happening in her heart, but I could see she did not believe in me.

"You may not believe us if you don't want to, but that's the truth. Even if you go to the club now, it won't do any good to anyone. Look around, you're making everyone worry about you."

Hopefully, this will work. I've noticed Akira often cared about those around her. Surely enough, she looked around and seemed to notice that everyone in the class were seriously worried about her.

I continued, "Everyone is worried about you, not only us two. We're all your friends."

I smiled at her, feeling as if I was getting a bit closer to her now, as if breaking through that wall she had built. Akira then looked at me surprised at what I said. She seemed to be thinking something and I waited patiently, watching her every move, trying not to miss any kind of an emotion in these empty eyes. Just then, she looked up at me with that innocent hopeful stare, as if waiting for something…

I didn't know what to do anymore. Inside, I was suddenly a mess. She was looking at me as if I was some kind of salvation to her and I knew right away - one wrong word and I'll loose her. Loose? Something suddenly froze inside of me, as I slowly and painfully realized what it truly was… that feeling, surfacing in me. I... I liked her. I liked Akira. No, it was something even deeper, more profound... Love?.. I looked at her as she was still waiting.

I came a bit closer to her, my heart starting to beat faster. What should I do? What should I say, so that she doesn't run away from me? She was standing right in front of me and I was looking down into her eyes. Her eyes were so beautiful... So innocent and hopeful...

I gathered all my strength, carefully picking my words, "I can see something's wrong with you. I don't know what it is, but isn't it time to stop acting? Trust me, I ..." I paused for a second. Damn, I almost slipped, I can't just tell my feelings to her, I can't scare her away, and, most importantly, I can't give away her secret here and now. "I really care about you, Akito."

Suddenly, she flinched at my words, her eyes widened in surprise. My heart stopped for a moment, skipping a beat, realizing the name I called her by. No, no... Can't be... I could almost physically feel her slipping away. I reached out to her with my right arm, but stopped as the emptiness suddenly returned to her eyes. She was behind that shell once again.

"I see," Akira said coldly. "I'm very glad to hear that."

She suddenly beamed a smile at me, "Thank you, Kyoya, everyone!"

She turned to the class, bowing, "I'm sorry for making you worry so much, I'm all fine now."

Then, Akira turned to me, smiling happily, "Thank you, Kyoya."

I could not say even a word. No, no, this was wrong. She was not fine! Stop acting like you're alright when you're not! I wanted to shout at her and shake her hard, but instead, I was just standing there, frozen, as I heard Tamaki whisper next to me, "He's not fine at all..."

* * *

The club time was coming to an end and everyone had left already. Only the Host Club members stayed back and Akira could feel their eyes on her. She had managed to fool everyone, except for the Host Club. They could see something was wrong with her and Akira only hoped they would not ask her anything.

She did not want to have another conversation like the one with Kyoya. His words still rang in her ears… the way he said that name. Akito. Akito. Akito. So tenderly, so caringly. Akito. Akito. Akito. Always HIM! Why is it always HIM? She had almost believed in Kyoya, almost let her guard down... No, there was no point.

She will be Akito for her whole life. Rage overtook her heart as Akira thought about her lost life, her lost identity. What was she to do now? She didn't know how to look at Kyoya anymore, how to face him... It was hard. Why was it so hard to act in front of him?.. What was he to her?

Something clenched in her heart and she could feel pain scorch through it. What was it? She didn't know. She just knew that right now, she didn't know what to do or where to go. There was so much pain, so much hurt, anger and hate that was pent up all those years. As if all the worst feelings had accumulated in her and just waited for the right moment to burst. She felt suffocated. She knew she had to get out. She had to run before anyone said something. The girl herself feared those dark feelings coming out.

Then, she heard footsteps and turned to see the Host club coming to her, worry in their eyes. She knew right away it was time to run, but at that moment, her phone rang. She quickly picked it up, not even looking at who it was, knowing it will give her time before confronting the Host club members. Lying was the hardest to them.

"Yeah?"

"Akira!" She gasped, recognizing the voice of her brother and he even called her by HER real name.

"Akira, listen to me. Just stay calm... Where are you now, Aki?"

"Host Club, why? Did..."

"Aki, I... Oh God... I was talking to our father… and," Touya let out an exasperated breath. "Akira, mother... our mother overheard..."

Akira froze. She overheard? That… that couldn't be good.

"Our mother is in the hospital," Touya whispered.

"W-what?.." Akira breathed in, unable to believe her ears.

"She's... dying..." Her brother continued and as the meaning of his words reached Akira's ears, the phone slipped from her hand and fell to the ground, breaking into pieces. The signal disappeared, but her brother's voice was still echoing in her head.

'_Dying? My mother is... dying?.._' It's been eight years since she'd gotten sick and she'd been hospitalized many times, her life at the brink of death.

'_Dying?_' Akira's mind went blank for a moment, and then...

"Heh... Hahaha... Hahahahahaahahhahhahah!!!"

Suddenly, she started laughing almost hysterically, '_So that's how it is! She's dying! YES, she's dying!!! Hahah! No more mother, no more acting and no more lies! No more AKITO!_'

She continued laughing as if she'd gone mad, tears flowing from her eyes as the reality struck her both as surreal and unbelievable. Her mind had finally snapped and she laughed at the false hopes of freedom she was keeping and the harsh way it was finally going to come true.


	17. Chapter 17

**So, ummm... You still have that box of tissues, right?.. Enjoy!**

* * *

Kyoya's POV

Everyone in the club noticed something was terribly wrong with Akito and we decided to try and help him. Well, it was her, actually, but I had kept it secret from everyone else, feeling it was not my place to step in and reveal it. Furthermore, I felt horrible, the dialogue from before constantly replaying in my mind. I wondered again and again how I could have said the one thing that hurt her the most? How foolish and stupid of me! Instead of helping her, I merely made the matters worse.

I could hardly concentrate on anything else the entire day. But, finally, the Host Club was closing and the last guests left. I must admit though, Akira was incredibly good at acting and I wondered if that was the reason why I never even considered the possibility of her being a girl. Well, that and all the official documents stating she was a boy.

I glanced at Akira and noticed her whirl around, looking at us. I knew what she was thinking - she was gonna run. Not that we were going to allow this, but before we could do something, Akira's phone rang. She picked it up immediately, probably using it as an escape route.

"Yeah?" She answered her cell, watching us intently at the same time.

She reminded me of a spooked wild animal now. I had a sudden urge to hug her again, tell her it all was gonna be alright...

Then, I noticed Akira gasp, as if she was surprised by something.

"Host Club, why? Did..." I could feel she was talking to someone close her to and I figured it was a member of her family.

"W-what?.." She took in a deep breath, her body tensing. Suddenly, the phone slipped from her hands and crashed onto the ground. I gasped and ran to her. What happened?

For a short moment, Akira's expression was completely blank and only her eyes betrayed a tint of emotions – confusion, disbelief…

"Heh... Hahaha... Hahahahahaahahhahhahah!!!" She broke into laughter, which sounded almost hysterical.

I watched her in surprise and wonder for I'd never seen her laugh like this. I'd never seen her laugh at all. Yet, this kind of laughter didn't seem to be natural at all. But Akira continued to laugh, crying at the same time, as I and the others were watching her lost as to what to do.

She was still chuckling madly, as I approached her carefully, reaching out my hand to her, "Aki?.. What happened? Aki?.."

I chose to call her by her shorter name, hoping it would not make the matters worse. Akira stopped laughing and glanced at me, her eyes incomprehensible.

"You know, Kyoya, I... I think I've never been this happy before," she whispered quietly and suddenly burst out laughing again. "HAPPY! In this kind of… this kind of… situation!"

"Akito, are you alright?" Honey came up closer, worried about his friend and I frowned slightly at the name.

Yet, Akira turned to Honey, smiling widely, "Never been better!"

Suddenly, she hugged Honey and spun him around a few times. I watched them carefully, flabbergasted. What was she so happy about? Yet, this happiness seemed… Something was incredibly wrong. I came up to Akira and grabbed her shoulder, turning her to face me.

"Aki! If you don't tell us what's going on, we can't help you!"

"Help me?" She looked up at me surprised. "But I don't need help. Now, everything will be just... perfect!"

She smiled at me for a moment and I wondered if perhaps Touya had kept his promise of making everything right again, but then suddenly she cast her head down, contemplating something deeply.

"But... what if it's a lie?"

"What's a lie?" I asked her carefully as the other members of the Host Club watched us silently, leaving the talking part to me. "Aki?"

She cast her glance away, staring intently at the floor as if something incredibly interesting was happening there.

"This has happened so many times already... They say she's gonna die, but she always comes back..." She whispered barely audibly and I was slowly starting to realize what exactly she was talking about.

"Who?.." I asked in a whisper as well, dreading the answer.

Akira glanced back up at me, her eyes completely empty and unfocused, as if her mind was elsewhere, "Mother..."

The whisper was so silent I could barely hear her. Then, suddenly Akira turned and kicked the chair wildly, yelling out, "She just refuses to die! For years now, I've been waiting, and waiting, but oooohhh no... Mother can't die so simply, she has the best doctors in the world!!! She just... doesn't DIE!" She screamed enraged. "Why?! Why can't she just DIE?!"

I stared at Akira shocked and taken aback by her sudden outburst. I never even imagined there was so much anger in her… Though, at the given circumstances…

Yet, before I could even say something, Tamaki came up to Akira and slapped her hard on a cheek, "Calm down, Akito!"

She looked at Tamaki surprised and I sighed. Good thinking, Tamaki. Slapping is one of the quickest ways to calm down a hysterical person. By now I realized it must have been Akira's brother or father on the phone. Something must have happened to her mother. This kind of news was just a huge shock to poor Akira and her mind had snapped, torn between her love for her mother and her yearning for freedom.

"Stop saying this nonsense," Tamaki put his hand on Akira's shoulder reassuringly. "You don't really want your mother to die, right, Akito?"

"But I DO," Akira replied clearly and slowly, as she brushed away Tamaki's hand.

She looked up, her eyes cold and unreadable again, her voice emotionless, "Don't act as if you're my friend. Don't act as if you know me, cause you DON'T."

Now, her eyes were burning with rage and hatred, "I HATE HER. I want her dead. Through all these years, I wonder how come I haven't killed her myself yet."

She giggled as she took a step towards Tamaki, who was still shocked as he could hardly imagine how a child would want to kill his own mother.

"Is it that hard for you to believe it?" Akira grinned widely. "I bet, you can't even imagine hating your own mother. Haha. What a joke. There are mothers who toss away their children, there are mothers who hate their child just because their eyes and hair are of different colour. So, why is it that hard to believe I could hate my own mother?"

She laughed again, but it sounded eerily and hysterically.

"That's nonsense!" I stepped in front of Tamaki. "Aki, grab a hold of yourself. I can't believe you would really want your mother dead. I know that you love her! I know how much you've done for her..."

"LOVE HER?!" She laughed hysterically again. "Oh yeah, I did everything because I loved her! Are you saying it wasn't enough?! Don't I have the right to live? If she dies, if she dies..." Suddenly, tears fell from her eyes and Akira started crying. "If she dies, I won't have to pretend any longer... if only she wasn't here... I just want to be free, is this such a bad thing? I did everything I could to be a good child for her, but it's just... it's just never ENOUGH!"

She sobbed uncontrollably, as she fell to her knees, hugging herself. I didn't know what to do… I wanted to hug her hard, yet, I was scared to do so.

"Am I... am I a bad... child now?" She continued crying and I knelt beside her.

"It's... It's alright..." I reached out to hug Akira, but suddenly I heard the creak of the doors and heavy panting. I raised my head to see Touya, Akira's older brother on the doorstep.

He halted only momentarily, taking in the scene in front of him. Akira was on the floor sobbing and we just stood around, not knowing how to help her.

"Aki!" Touya dashed to us quickly, but stopped as Akira turned to him, tears still wetting her soft cheeks.

"T-Touya..." she whispered.

Touya turned, glaring at me, "What the hell have you done to her?!"

I looked at him worriedly, but didn't get a chance to say even a word as he lunged forward and pushed me down to the floor, his hands pressing my neck, "What did you say to Aki, you bastard?!"

"NO! Touya, stop it!" I heard Akira scream and Touya let go of me immediately.

I panted, breathing in deeply, as Tamaki and Haruhi knelt beside me worriedly. I raised my head to see Akira just standing there, her head cast down.

"I... I'm really the worst, Touya..." Tears started falling down her cheeks again, and I saw Touya hug her firmly.

I felt something in my chest tighten; I didn't like this at all. I wanted to be the one to comfort Akira and to hold her close beside me, but then… why did I hesitate? I rose to my feet, watching the two siblings silently.

"No, no, don't say that," Touya pressed her to him, patting her head gently. "Why do you keep saying this?.."

"When you said mother was dying... I was happy, I was so happy..."

Akira suddenly pushed Touya away and staggered backwards a bit, "I'm a bad child, right, Touya? The worst child ever... hah... hahah!"

Akira laughed lightly, her cheeks wet with tears, her eyes rising up to look at her brother, "I should have died back then, after all. I deserve this..."

Touya grabbed Akira by her shoulders firmly, "Stop it, Aki! Look at me! It's alright! It's alright; you're the best child a parent could ever wish for! No child could have ever sacrificed this much..."

He hugged Akira again and I heard her whisper to him, "But mommy doesn't love me anymore..."

"Of course, she does! Of course, she does..." Touya repeated as if chanting.

I stared at the two quietly. This wasn't something I or someone else could intervene into. This was their family problems and I felt helpless. There was nothing I could really do.

"God, Aki... I never knew you had these kind of thoughts... I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Aki," Touya whispered fervently. "Forgive me. Please, forgive me."

"Mother... is she really dying?"

Touya sighed, breaking out of the hug and looking down at Akira, "I don't know. The doctors say she doesn't have much left. She... she's really weak right now... Aki... You must stay strong."

"Stay strong, huh?" Akira looked at her brother ever so calmly, but it was even scarier than when he was yelling and laughing madly. "Did she... say something?"

Touya breathed in loudly, but said nothing.

"DID SHE SAY SOMETHING?!" Akira snapped again and we all flinched at the force in her voice.

Touya looked away from her guiltily, "She asked to see you."

"Whom?" Akira's voice was cold, but angry. I could feel all of her hatred in it. "Why so silent, Touya?" She asked almost mockingly. "Come on, tell me the truth. Whom did she want to see by her death-bed?"

Her brother let out a sigh, still looking away, as if not daring to look into Akira's eyes, "Akito..."

"But of course, whom else?" Akira giggled and it gave me the creeps. Her suddenly emotionless eyes and sinister laughter. The worst was that I could understand her…

"Then, let's give her what she wants, shall we? Let's be a good boy till the very end..." She turned around and walked towards the door, Touya still standing unmoving, where she left him.

Suddenly, Akira halted and half-turned to us and her brother, "See? She doesn't love me, after all... Even when dying, she still... asks for HIM."


	18. Chapter 18

**I can see someone really hates Lady Sakura... and Akira's father too. Lol. I'm glad my story got such strong reactions from my readers. I hope you enjoy these last updates!**

* * *

She stood in front of the white hospital door, her body shaking slightly. The girl was a complete mess. She came here harboring hatred and anger, but now, looking through the little glass window in the door, seeing her mother, just lying there, so weak and lifeless, almost not breathing; seeing her father, bended beside her, as if the burden of the whole world weighed on his shoulders... Akira just couldn't bring herself to hate her now, not now. Deep in her heart, the girl loved her. She loved her so much that she was willing to sacrifice everything – her life, her identity, her friends, her love... She casted it all away, but now... Now nothing mattered, because her mother lay there... helpless, dying. Dying.

"They want to operate her," Touya put his hand on her shoulder. "There is only a 13 percent chance of her surviving, so she wanted to see you before that. She wouldn't agree to be operated until she saw you."

"Akito. Akito, not me," Akira whispered sadly.

"Akira..."

"I know!" She cried out. "I can't be as selfish as this. I... I..."

A nurse came out of the room, closing the doors quietly. She nodded at the two siblings, "She had just regained her consciousness a little while ago, we can not wait any longer. She's in critical condition. Please, be quick, the doctors will come in 5 minutes to take her for the operation."

Akira nodded and breathed in deeply. '_Here goes, I'll be Akito once again. Just for you, mother, only for you..._'

She pushed the door and went in, Touya following her. Her father didn't even raise his head. Akira once thought she hated her father as well, more than anyone else in the world, but seeing him broken like this, she felt as if she could understand him a little bit, just a little bit. Her mother was the world to him, his whole life.

She stepped forward and halted near the bed, where lady Sakura was lying. She was breathing slowly and so weakly, Akira could barely see her chest rising. Suddenly, she wanted to cry. This was her mother. Nothing really mattered anymore – her being Akito or Akira, her pretending and lying. Nothing mattered... she was dying, and she was your only mother.

The girl sat slowly on her mother's bed, taking her frail and pale hand in hers.

"Mother..." Akira called her softly. Sakura's eyelids fluttered and she opened her eyes a bit, focusing her glance on Akira.

Akira smiled at her gently and pressed her hand a bit harder, just to let her mother know she was here. Sakura smiled back weakly. Tears started gathering in Akira's eyes, but she held it back, for she had to be strong. Lady Sakura always wanted Akito to be strong and manly… This was not the time to break down. She'd act it all the way to the end perfectly.

Suddenly, her mother reached out her other hand and touched Akira's hair gently.

"What happened... to your hair?" She whispered quietly and Akira looked at her surprised.

'_What does she mean?_'

"Nothing, mother. What are you talking about?" Akira smiled at Sakura gently. "It's alright, just rest, mother. Don't talk too much."

Lady Sakura looked back at Akira's eyes, a little surprised, "Why... did you cut it?"

'_Huh?_' Akira stared at her mother shocked, unable to understand the queer dialogue they were sharing. She always cut her hair short like a boy. What was Sakura talking about now?

Then, she heard Touya gasp behind her in sudden realization, "Oh, God..."

Akira still could not understand a thing of what was going on, not until her mother spoke again, caressing her daughter's cheek softly, "Long hair... suit girls better... Akira..."

She smiled softly, "You always... had nice hair..."

Akira's eyes widened in sudden surprise and her pulse quickened, her breathing shaky. What did she just say? No, what did she just call you?!

"Mother?.." She couldn't believe it, she needed to hear it again. "Mother..."

Akira grasped the frail hand tightly, her heart beating fast, as her mother looked at her gently, whispering the words she yearned to hear for so long, "Akira... I love you... I always... have... always..."

Lady Sakura fell silent then, her eyes closing and Akira shot up, grabbing her mother's shoulders, "NO! NO, NO, NO!!! Don't... Say it again! Please... mother, don't... not now..."

As Akira sobbed, her heart breaking into little pieces, she felt arms pulling her away. She hardly heard doctors rush in as all she felt were her hands getting empty and the girl struggled to get free. But they were taking her away... No, not now, not now when her mother finally acknowledged her and remembered her...

"Mother!.. MOTHER!" Akira shouted, crying so much she could barely see anything in front of her. Someone's strong hands held her close and she heard her name being called, "Akira! Akira! Calm down, Akira..."

Someone pulled her into a hug and she felt the warmth of another's body. She raised her head to see Touya, but not even his gentle hands could help her now. She felt empty again, something lacking inside.

Then, the girl heard a muffled sob and turned her head to see her father. He was... crying?! Touya turned to him, "Father..."

She silently let go of her brother and pushed him towards their father. "Go to him," she whispered. "He needs you more than I do."

"But..." Touya turned to his little sister.

"Go..." Akira smiled slightly. "I'll be fine and I need to be alone. Stay with him, please. He needs someone now."

Touya nodded and kissed her forehead gently. Then, he turned to his father and knelt beside him. Akira whirled around and left the hospital room. The events of the past ten minutes were swirling in her head, making tears form in her eyes again. Her mother. Her gentle, beautiful mother. She remembered her, she finally remembered her… And then they took her for the operation... 13%... 13%... The girl bit her lip painfully, the tears rolling down her cheeks again.

'_I hated her, I said I hated her. I wanted her to die...So, why?.. Why... so stupid, so silly... how could I?.. Mother, please, oh, please, God... if you're there... I'd give anything... anything..._' She started sobbing, quickening her steps. '_I didn't even tell her how much I truly loved her…_'

Suddenly, Akira felt that she just had to get out of here, to get somewhere far away, somewhere else than here. And so, she took off running through the corridors, as fast as she could, breathing heavily, tears running down her face. She almost ran into someone, brushing him with her shoulder. For a second there, she thought she heard her name being called, but she didn't stop, just ran forward, all the hurt and guilt taking away her breath. '_It was my fault, my fault, all my fault! Why did I want her to die? WHY?! She can't die, not now... not now... she remembered me... she called me Akira, she called me Akira, not Akito... she said she loved me... always!'_

She choked on her own tears and she couldn't even see where she was running. '_Loved me... always... always_!' Akira didn't notice she had run out of the hospital and into the street ahead…

Through the hazed mist of her tears she only noticed the bright lights heading into her, when someone's strong grip pulled her by her arm back onto the pavement, hugging her tightly, "Akira!.."

* * *

Kyoya's POV

"See? She doesn't love me, after all... Even when dying, she still... asks for HIM." Akira turned away and left, Touya following her out shortly.

He didn't turn back to us and didn't say anything, just left after his sister. For a while, we all stood silent. It was clear Akira had just let go of everything that hurt her all these years… I stood with my head cast down, guilt eating away at me. I should have done something when I first saw her act so weirdly. I should have said something, should have hugged her. Should not have let her go…

"Is Akito going to be alright?" I heard Hikaru ask in a whisper. Awkwardly, the twins had stayed incredibly calm the entire time. Only their eyes betrayed their worry.

"I... I don't know," Tamaki sit down, shaking his head. "I... I really didn't know a thing about him. I don't understand."

Honey came up to him, "Perhaps, none of us did."

Haruhi nodded, "I'm sure it had been hard on Aki all this time."

"Akito..." Tamaki looked down to the ground, worried.

"Akira," I corrected him automatically. "Akira."

"Akira?" The king raised his head confused and I nodded solemnly.

"Not Akito, Akira."

"Akira," Honey echoed after me and his eyes glinted with sudden realization.

"Hn," Mori mused and I pushed my glasses up. The truth was out. There.

Then why did I feel like I should be somewhere elsewhere? Why do I still feel so guilty? Something was gnawing at my heart and I shut my eyes close, wishing I could be with Akira now. She… needed someone by her side, right?..

"Go to her," Haruhi said and I looked at her surprised. "Go."

I did not need to be told a third time as I cursed in my mind at my own stupidity and pushed through the host club members, dashing towards the doors.

"Kyoya! Wait up! Where…" Tamaki gripped my wrist, stopping me and I turned to him.

"I'm going to find her, you stay here!"

"Huh?! We wanna go too!" Tamaki protested, but he was stopped by Mori.

"Hn, we stay."

"Yep, you go catch her, we'll wait for you right here, right, Tama-chan?" Honey smiled, pressing his bunny to his chest tightly.

I smirked and rushed out of the doors. I flew down the stairs, my heart beating heavily against my rib cage, my mind worried and happy at the same time. I had cast away my logic and for once I was following the road that my heart was pushing me towards to… This was so not like me, but that's the effect Akira had on me. Was that something everyone who fell in love felt?..

As I ran out of the building, I was already calling my driver for the car and then the hospital information center. In a few minutes I knew the needed information and was already going full speed to the right hospital. Akira, you just wait for me!

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I got out of the car and ran into the hospital, panting slightly as I passed by the people in the corridors. 3rd floor, room 313, that's at the very end of the corridor. I flew up the stairs, not minding the nurses shouting at me. I wanted to see Akira. I wanted to make sure. I wanted to hug her tightly and never let her go. Not ever. To protect her, to help her, save her, tell her how much I loved her. Yes, loved...

I ran into the corridor and dashed towards the end as suddenly I noticed another person running towards me. Akira?! Yeah, that was her. I slowed down a bit, but didn't manage to turn in time and she brushed by me, not stopping.

"Akira!" I called her, but she didn't halt. Damn, where was she running? She could get hurt like this. I whirled around and chased after the girl. I remembered the manager of the hospital mentioned her mother was in a critical condition, soon to be operated. The operation would hardly be successful. There was little hope of her surviving.

In a few minutes Akira was out of the hospital and so was I. She must have lost all her senses in shock... Horror clenched my heart when I saw her not stopping in front of the road. She was just about to run into the street in front of the upcoming car as I finally managed to grab her arm and pull her into a hug, calling out her name, "Akira!"

She was shaking as she plastered herself to me, gripping me as if for dear life. I could feel my shirt getting wet from her tears.

"Mother, mother... Give her back, God... give her back to me..." She sobbed, clenching my shirt tightly. "God, please, forgive me... I'll do anything, I swear... I will, just... give her back, please..."

I hugged her even tighter and held her like this for a while, almost crying myself. It hurt deep in my chest and something was stuck in my throat. I could almost feel her pain as my own, her frail body shaking with sobs, soft whimpers coming out of her quivering lips. I softly brushed her hair with my lips, kissing her forehead, trying to comfort her as best as I could. How could I ever mix her up with a boy? Why didn't I see all this pain and hurt before? Why didn't I hold her like this earlier? What was I hesitating for? It was beyond my understanding how I could have been such a fool...


	19. Chapter 19

Kyoya's POV

I held Akira in my arms for some time until I felt she had calmed down a little. Then, I led her away gently from the pavement by the road and into the inner courtyard of the hospital. We sat down on a bench. She wasn't crying anymore, but her body was still shaking a bit and she was clenching my hand in hers, not letting go. I sat beside her and tensed when she leaned on me, resting her head on my shoulder. She stayed silent and I kept quiet as well. There was nothing I could have said. Words won't affect the outcome of the operation. All we could do was wait.

* * *

Akira leaned onto his shoulder, wanting to have someone close to her. It was rare that she needed comfort, but today was just a bit too much for her. For some reason, she felt calmer now that Kyoya was beside her and Akira sneaked a glance at his face. His eyes were serious and calm. He didn't have that stupid sympathetic look she hated so much, just a bit of sadness. She felt his hand brush her hair gently and tears started slipping down her cheeks again.

"Will... she die?" Akira wondered and Kyoya kept silent for a few seconds.

"I don't know," he finally replied in a soft whisper.

He didn't say 'No', he didn't lie to her. Akira closed her eyes in a queer feeling of relief and gratitude. Maybe... just maybe... but... maybe, she could trust him.

"I'm... scared..." She whispered quietly, but Kyoya heard her.

He kept quiet for a while again and Akira thought he wasn't going to say anything. After all, what could he say? And why should he? She bit her lip a bit. Why was he even here? Why was he here?..

"Don't be," she raised her head surprised at his words, looking up at him.

Only now did Akira notice his eyes were so beautiful. He always hid them behind the glasses... There, again. The glasses reflected the light and she couldn't see those calm eyes any longer.

"I'm here with you," Kyoya said calmly, but firmly. "So don't be afraid anymore."

Akira nodded, reaching out her hand and taking his glasses away. He glanced at her surprised.

"Why?" She looked him at the eyes. "Why are you here?.."

Kyoya smiled at her gently, but it wasn't the fake smile he usually gave everyone. Akira could tell it was real and it made her... happy? She felt her heart flutter a bit, as she tried to calm down.

"Because I care about you," he whispered and her heart was now beating like crazy.

She blushed. Somehow, right now, she forgot everything – her mother and her whole family. She could only see Kyoya.

'_No, no... don't say what you don't mean... I might... I might..._' A tear slipped down her cheek again.

"Don't... I'll misunderstand you," she whispered meekly.

"Please, do," Kyoya whispered back to her, leaning closer.

What came next seemed so unbelievable that Akira could hardly comprehend what happened. She just felt soft warm lips on hers, a gentle, yet a bit demanding kiss. His arms pulling her into a hug, not letting go. Not that she tried to get away... Not that she wanted to.

He let her go in a moment, but stayed close. Cold air touched her lips and Akira felt as if she lacked something now. His lips on hers felt so perfect, so warm and soothing. She opened her eyes to see Kyoya's face in front of her. His serious eyes were looking into hers, "Akira... I'll never leave you, I'll always be here for you. I'll never let you go. I want to know everything about you, I want to see your smiles and your tears, I want to know what makes you happy or what hurts you, what makes you laugh, what scares you away, everything, everything about you... Every little detail, every expression, I want to see it all... I want to be with you..."

He paused and then added, "Just please, please... believe me, don't push me away..."

Tears started slipping down again as she wanted to believe him so much. Strangely enough, she wanted him to be here. Akira was not sure when exactly it happened for she thought she never harbored any feelings towards him, but now the girl felt as if she could never go on if Kyoya didn't hold her hand in his, if he wasn't there, watching over her, supporting her, loving her... Loving?.. Did he?.. Akira looked up at him hopefully. She wanted to hear it, she needed to hear it.

Kyoya leaned towards her and she thought he was going to kiss her again, but he just brushed his lips on her cheek, catching a lonely tear, whispering, "I love you, Akira, I love you so much..."

He hugged her tightly and she hugged him back, not wanting to let go, "Kyoya... Stay with me... always."

*+*

When Akira woke up, it was already dark. She seemed to have fallen asleep by Kyoya's side. His arm rested over her shoulder and the heaviness of it felt incredibly soothing. The girl glanced up at the boy beside her and Kyoya smiled at her gently, caressing her hair. She averted her gaze at the hospital's door, knowing she had to go in there sooner or later. The reality weighed down heavily once again and she felt scared, but then Kyoya's hand pressed hers. Akira turned to him.

"I'm here," he whispered and she smiled.

Yes, he was here for her. It felt so good, having someone by her side, someone she came to trust completely, someone who understood her perhaps even better than she herself did. The two got up and stepped towards the hospital, holding hands. Her heart was beating loud and fast, but the strength Kyoya was giving her now urged her to go on. She did not want to run any longer. Whatever the outcome may be, she had decided to accept it. She knew expecting a miracle was impossible, but still, somewhere deep in the corner of her heart, there was hope. Undying, never giving up, burning slowly, keeping her alive and hopeful.

They climbed the stairs and went along the corridor heading to where her father and brother sat on a bench beside the operating-room. Her father's bended figure, crushed by all the hardships and the heavy decisions of his life, seemed almost pitiful to her now. For some reason, all her hatred and anger had disappeared and the only thing she could feel for this man was sympathy.

Kyoya pressed her hand supportively as they neared them and then halted just beside the seat. Her brother Touya looked up at them and a gentle smile bent his lips as he noticed them holding hands. He then turned to their father, touching his shoulder softly, "Father."

The crippled man flinched and raised his head up, his eyes widening slightly upon seeing his daughter.

"Akira," he whispered and the girl stared at him surprised. There was so much pain and guilt in his eyes that it made her shiver. She never noticed how old he had gotten throughout those eight years.

In another second, Akira felt being pulled into a tight hug, as her father pressed her tightly to himself, "I've been such a fool, Akira! I know you can never forgive me what I've done, but I swear I'll do everything in my power, everything I can to get your trust back. I'll never let you get hurt like this again..."

Tears betrayed Akira again, slipping down her cheeks. She could hardly believe it and it seemed so unreal. Perhaps, the tragedy had finally opened his eyes, perhaps, it was another lie on his part, but it did not matter. For the first time in eight years, her father had called her by her true name and hugged her tightly, just like he used to.

"Daddy..." Akira hugged him back lovingly and the two stayed like this for a few minutes, catching up to all the years they had missed.

The two broke out of their hug only having heard someone's footsteps and as they turned to see who it was, they recognized lady Sakura's doctor. Akira's heart skipped a beat and she drew in a deep breath as the doctor neared them, brushing away sweat from his forehead.

Akira closed her eyes as she prayed in her mind, feeling more scared than ever. Kyoya pressed her shoulders supportively and whispered, "Look."

She opened her eyes, trusting his voice, her gaze falling on the man with the white coat. He seemed tired, but his eyes were looking at the family members gently and a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips. A smile?

The doctor reached out his arm and shook her father's hand, "Your wife has pulled through. The operation was a success. She will have to be hospitalized and we shall watch for any possible side-effects, however, her life is no longer in danger."

He was saying something more, but Akira no longer heard it as a mist covered her eyes and she started crying again. Kyoya hugged her tightly and she hugged him back.

"What about her memory?" Akira heard Kyoya's voice and she glanced at the doctor anxiously.

"I am sorry, it is too soon to tell," he shook his head. "I'm afraid there might be some memory lapses, but I can't say for sure. Only time will show."

Akira bit down her disappointment, refusing to feel down again. Her mother was alive. That was what mattered.

Another hand rested on her head gently and surprised she lifted her eyes to see her father, "Whatever happens, Akira, I will never let you go through this again. I promise you that."

He leaned and kissed her forehead tenderly before retreating back further down the corridor to talk to the doctor. Touya gave her a reassuring smile as he added, "And I'll make sure he keeps that promise. I won't let you down this time around."

Somehow, that brought a smile to the girl's lips and she watched her brother join her father and the doctor with incredible relief. She could only hope this was not a dream. Suddenly, all her troubles seemed to go away so easily, it seemed almost surreal.

"I assure you, this is not a dream," Kyoya noted and she looked up at him.

Somehow, she felt as if she had just been born again. This was a new beginning for Akira Heishi and she knew no hardships would ever be too hard for her. She would take on anything that life threw at her... because she was no longer alone.

She stood on her tiptoes, reaching out to Kyoya, and whispered softly into his ear, a smile tugging her lips, "I love you... Kyoya Ohtori... with all my heart."

* * *

**Yes, for everyone still wondering, this was the last chapter and I hope the ending wasn't too fairy-tale and disappointing, especially to those of you, who were hoping for coffins and mental hospitals. . I just couldn't bring myself to do this. I think Akira deserves some happiness after all I made her go through. ^^ But you are welcome to express your love, amazement and all the good feelings (together with the bad ones, like anger, hatred and cursing) by reviewing. I will bring non-flammable shields with me... **


	20. Valentine's Special

**I wrote this light-hearted piece for the Valentine's day, but it's still so far away, so meh, you can read it now. I'm sure you'd like to know how Akira and Kyoya are doing, so here's a little glance at their love life. Enjoy! **  


* * *

Akira took the small brown piece of chocolate into her hands and held it between her fingers, contemplating what was the reason for her yet another failure. At least it smelled good this time. That's some improvement, right? But the taste… Oh, the taste.

She sighed. She'd been trying to make some chocolates for Kyoya, but she kept failing miserably. How hard could it be, you may ask? Well, for someone who's doing it for the first time in her life… let's just say, beyond hope.

Just a few months ago she was a boy. Now Akira was back to being a girl, but she had no idea how to be one. Well, her mother Sakura was more enthusiastic about it. She was back to normal now, though her body was still very weak and she still spent her days in the house and her garden. Both of Akira's parents were feeling beyond guilty that she had sacrificed her "blossoming youth", or so they called it. Thus, her mother was trying to get her to act like a girl, yet, frankly said, she was failing as miserably as Akira did in making chocolates.

Akira heaved another sigh as she stared at the small heart-shaped chocolate. Of course, she could have asked mother for help, but that would have been… oh, well, let's not think about that. The most important thing was that she was now standing in one of the Ouran High School kitchens, trying to make something that at least resembled chocolates.

Suddenly, she heard a loud bang of the doors and the twins Kaoru and Hikaru shouted in unison, "There you are, princess!"

She sighed yet again. Just what she needed, and do note the sarcasm. Akira put down the chocolate heart and turned around. The twins were already only a step away from her, grinning happily.

"We've been looking for you all over the school," Hikaru smiled.

"What are you doing here, Akira-chan?" Kaoru peeked over her shoulder.

She frowned slightly. Now they were definitely going to tell Kyoya.

"It's… chocolate?" Kaoru muttered surprised.

"Ohhhhh," they both smirked, looking at the girl with those all-knowing eyes.

"Oh, shut it, both of you," she turned to the table with chocolates. "And don't tell anyone, please."

"Absolutely," they shouted in unison, as Hikaru grabbed one piece of chocolate. "Smells really good."

Akira grabbed his wrist and glared at him. "Don't. Trust me, you don't want it."

The twins stared at her surprised and that's when they heard someone scream in a childish tone, "Chocolates!"

This time Akira failed to react in time and Honey thrust a few pieces of dark brown chocolate into his mouth.

"Oh, no…" The girl breathed out, shutting her eyes in despair.

"Mmmmmmmm… uhhh… ghack-," Honey's eyes widened and his face turned a shade of blue as he rushed towards the nearest sink.

Shocked Mori ran after him worriedly.

"Wow!" The twins exclaimed in unison as Akira rushed to Honey, who was trying to spit out the remaining chocolate.

"I'm so sorry, Honey-senpai!"

"What did you put into the chocolates? Poison?" Hikaru asked, his eyes already glinting mischievously.

Akira shrugged, "I don't know how it turned out this way. I followed the recipe, I swear."

"Hmmm…" Kaoru grinned and turned to Hikaru. "Are you thinking-"

"-what I'm thinking?" Hikaru finished for him and they both smirked, their eyes trailing off to the chocolates on the table.

Akira's brow twitched slightly and she grabbed the hands of the already ready to run off twins.

"No feeding chocolates to Tamaki!"

"Awwww… why not?" The twins shouted in unison.

Akira only shook her head, "And if any of you tell about this to Kyoya or anyone else, I will personally feed you my home-made apple pie. Got it?"

"Uh," the twins opened their mouths as if to say something but Akira shut them up with one glare.

"Not a word, not even half a word and not even an 'Hn'," she glared at Mori, who only gulped and nodded slowly.

"Hn."

* * *

* Later that evening *

* * *

"Argh," Akira sent the pot flying into the nearest wall. "Why can't I do it right?"

The girl panted heavily as she sat down by the table. The chocolates seemed to be cursed. Everything she made tasted awful. And she had no more time left. Of course, she could always buy some chocolates, but, hey, this is Kyoya Ohtori we're talking about. He could buy any chocolate he wanted, even order for it to be made on the moon. Akira sighed, and, furthermore, she wanted to make it, not buy it. It had no meaning, if it was bought.

It's been almost a month since she had started dating Kyoya. Well, she thought she was dating him. After all, he said he loved her and even kissed her. But then, in this past month he hasn't done anything more with her. Aren't couples supposed to be going on dates, holding hands, kissing and so on? Yet, nothing of that in their love life.

She couldn't even be lovey-dovey with him in school because his popularity as a host would drop and she didn't want for that to happen. And now, that she was a girl, she no longer belonged to the Host Club. Her time with Kyoya was so limited she found the distance between them two growing more and more. It was great she didn't have to pretend to be a boy any more; yet, her love life was going down the drain. Did Kyoya really love her? Maybe, it was just an attraction and it had passed already? These doubts constantly clouded the girl's mind and she could think of nothing else, but show her feelings to him once more, by giving him her home-made chocolates.

That was a good plan, but it was lacking in the chocolate-making part. She sighed. There was no other choice but to go to _her_. Mother.

She'll just have to endure it. For her love. For Kyoya. And for chocolates, of course.

* * *

* Valentine's Day *

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I put my notebook down with a slight bang. She was not here. Again. Just where does she keep disappearing to? For the last two days she's been constantly sleeping in her classes and she would leave straight after school, heading off somewhere. She didn't answer my messages and when I tried calling no one would pick up. She would message me later, telling me she was busy. Busy with what? And today was Valentine's Day. I was sure she would stop by to see me. No matter how busy we were today, I was looking forward to her coming. But she was not here.

I glanced irritated at the twins, who were spouting their usual nonsense to some girls. I knew they knew something. Just yesterday, when I asked them whether they've seen Akira, they just gulped guiltily, and gave me those pitying glances. I tried asking Honey, but he almost burst into tears and ran off without even finishing his cake. Actually, lately he seemed somewhat repulsed by the sweets. Was he having some stomach problems? Mori was no better either as he only patted my shoulder sympathetically, whispering, "Be strong."

This whole situation was getting on my nerves slowly. I could wait no longer. I had to know what was going on. I could not found any logical reason for Akira to act this way. Well, my logic and analytic capabilities would always break down when it came to her. But still, there should be a good enough reason for her bizarre behavior.

"Huh?" I heard Tamaki mutter. He was looking out of the window. "Isn't that Akira down there? Who's the guy?"

The guy? My mind went blank as I rushed to the window in mere seconds. Down by the school entrance, Akira was talking to some blond guy. I mentally skipped through all the pupils in this school. I was sure he didn't belong to Ouran School. Meanwhile, the guy smiled and hugged her around her shoulders. What the-? I clenched my fists, seeing Akira nod her head, smiling warmly at him. What is this? I felt my heart squeeze inside. I did not believe that Akira cheated on me. She would never do it. She was not like that. There must be something else. Is she being deceived by that guy? She's so fragile and naïve.

I turned on my heel and ran out, ignoring Tamaki shouting something to me. God knows what that guy had in mind. I ran down the stairs and took a shortcut by jumping down from a third storey window. After landing, I immediately took off towards the School entrance.

Yet, I was too late and could only see a car drive off. "Damn it!" I cursed and got my cell, quickly dialing the number. They are not getting away from me.

* * *

* An hour later *

* * *

I got off the car and looked up at the building. My contacts said the car belonged to this hotel and was used to drive its clients. I stepped through the doors, heading towards the registration desk, but my attention was drawn by a clink of the elevator doors. I automatically turned my head and my eyes widened as I saw Akira step out, the blonde guy following her. Akira…

She turned to the guy and bowed to him. I headed towards them, my pace quickening up with every step. I could not control it any longer. All my senses and cool seemed to disappear and it was replaced by boiling blood and jealousy, scorching my every thought. She smiled at him and laughed at something he said. My mind got clouded even more and I broke into a run. Just as I reached them, the guy was pulling Akira into a hug. I lost all my reasoning as I grabbed his arm, twisting it, and then kicked him into stomach, pushing him down. The guy fell, clutching his stomach and whimpering.

"Kyoya!" Akira shouted in surprise and I turned to her, anger seeping into my heart.

"Who is he to you?"

"Wha-," she stared at me baffled, her innocent clear eyes showing me she did not understand anything at this point.

"Who is he?" I asked again, anger now changing into hurt. I still could not think rationally. If I did, maybe I would have realized how silly I was acting, but all my reasoning was replaced by those strong feelings of jealousy and pain. I could not believe she would betray me or cheat on me, I refused to. Akira was not like that. Yet, other guy touching her intimately like this was making me burn with fury.

"Are you… jealous?" She whispered, her lips suddenly carving into a smile.

What is she so happy about?

"You're jealous!" She screamed as she thrust herself upon me, hugging me. "I'm so happy!"

I felt flabbergasted. What is going on?

"I was so scared," she whispered. "If you're jealous, does that mean you like me at least a bit?"

"Are you kidding me?" I whispered back, hugging her tightly. "I love you so much, I can't even control myself."

"Damn, your boyfriend sure is strong," I turned my head, glaring at the guy, who was slowly getting up and waving nonchalantly to the hotel personnel that everything's fine. "Is he the one you were making chocolates for, Akira?"

Chocolates?

Akira broke out of my hug. "Umm, Kyoya, this is my cousin. He's a pastry chef."

"Pastry chef?" I echoed, my brains finally starting to function again. Chocolates. Valentine's Day. Oh, shit.

"Her mother contacted me, said something about her adorable daughter having troubles with chocolates," the guy snickered. "Trust me; you'll thank me that you don't need to eat those things she was making up till now."

"Stop it," Akira blushed a deep shade of red. "I'm just… not too good at making sweets. It wasn't that bad."

"U-huh," the guy rolled his eyes. "Anyway, I'll leave you two to your lovey-dovey stuff. Good kick you have there, kid."

He walked away and I turned to Akira. She looked away embarrassed as she gave me a small white box, tied with a red ribbon.

"This… this is something I made," she looked up at me. "I just… I just wanted to tell you that… I… I love you."

I smiled. "Silly, you didn't have to try this hard. I don't need any chocolates. I only need you."

"But…but we don't go on dates much… and we don't… k-k-k-ki…" She fell silent without finishing her sentence.

I sighed. So that's what everything is about. I took her hand, as I looked into her eyes.

"I'm sorry for worrying you, Akira," she smiled, shaking her head as if silently saying it's alright. "I was afraid to rush things. You just returned to being a girl, I did not want to shock you. I thought I should I give you some time to get used to your new life. I guess I only made it worse."

I smiled as I leaned to kiss her gently, pressing her closer to me. "Let me reassure you of my feelings..."

* * *

* Meanwhile in the Host Club *

* * *

"I wonder if Kyoya is going to be alright," Tamaki pondered as he sat down on the sofa.

The twins merely smirked at each other as they snickered. "Oh, we can always visit him in the hospital."

"The hospital?" Tamaki looked confused.

The twins only grinned mischievously.

"Ohhh, my lord!" Hikaru called out as Kaoru got a small red box shaped as a heart.

"A girl left this for you, lord," Kaoru extended the box to Tamaki, who grabbed it happily.

"OH! OH! A sweet princess, secretly admiring my beauty and expressing her precious feelings with these chocolates. Oh, how romantic!"

He opened the box and took out a brown piece of chocolate, shaped as a little heart.

The twins grinned as they silently exchanged glances with each other. Meanwhile, Tamaki put the chocolate into his mouth, smiling happily.

"Mmm, how delicious. Though it is a bit too… Mmmm… ghack-"


End file.
